Comments on: A bizarre testimonial

By: roaminghermit

roaminghermit — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 16:14:02 +0000

after my 3rd heart attack dec 04 I quit the veggie/ornish just plant food eating and now with type 2 this yr am still doing great with no carbs. also off BP drugs and since May have stopped all lipitor and crestor (7 days of crestor was enough) still getting stronger and no more brain fog feeling, wish I knew then what I know now…LOL great blog and hope you keep it going

I’m glad to hear you’re doing so well. You were the inspiration for my post today.

Cheers–

MRE

By: Ben Fury

Ben Fury — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 06:44:51 +0000

�CONSULTING: If you’re not a part of the solution, there’s good money to be made in prolonging the problem.�

Larry Kersten (American Sociologist and Author. )

Having consulted in the past, I could take umbrage at Kersten’s quote… but I KNOW the kind of consultants he’s talking about.

LOL!!!

By: ida

ida — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 22:09:02 +0000

when i was a very fat 17 year old girl (225 pounds on my 5′8″ frame!) i made up my own diet of eggs, meat, poultry, fish and vegetables. i never read a diet book, it just seemed to make sense to give up “fake” foods and only eat foods found in nature. i got down to 145 by the time i was in my early twenties and have stayed there ever since. last year, at the wise old age of 47, i read dean ornish’s books and decided i had done everything wrong…that non fat vegan was the only way to go. i GAINED 30 pounds, lost my sex drive, my energy and developed a crippling sugar addiction within in 6 months! needless to say i have gone back to foods found in nature and my shape is slowly coming back (and i’m chasing the boyfriend around the house again!)

and thank you sir, your blog is a true delight to read!

best,
ida

Hi Ida–

Thanks for the great comment. And thanks for the kind words about the blog.

Cheers–

MRE

By: Guru

Guru — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 19:13:41 +0000

I did not believe many things that Bill Clinton said when he was President. So why start now?!

We saw a TV spot the other day with Huckabee going for a run… my daughter remarked that he sure has tacked a few pounds around the waist. Semi-starvation and yo-yo dieting is what it looks like… not serious low carbing.

I am an Asian Indian, was proudly a ‘pure’ vegetarian until the age of 30 .. not even eggs. But born with a great love for rice, vegetables, fruits and potatoes.. loved it. The food pyramid in the US reinforced these beliefs in the superiority of the ’simple’ Indian way of life and the glorious holistic stuff. Bottomline, I am a type2 now at age 51 and my wife will attest that it is all due to the quantity of rice that I ate twice every day.

Low carb is the only way I want to live now. I honestly have no desire for rice anymore. My BG is normal only with diet and metformin. I lost 40 lbs in 9 months and am at normal BMI for the first time in my life. Finally (and thankfully) I am in control. I travel a lot, but manage on the road quite easily and actually is no hardship.

So, I do not need Ornish. Been there, done that. Thank you very much.

Hey Guru–

Thanks for the med/diet history. I’m glad you found low-carb and are doing so well on it. Maybe with a little time at your normal weight you’ll be able to ditch the metformin as well.

Cheers–

MRE

By: LCforevah

LCforevah — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 22:57:22 +0000

What a surprise. Years ago, when you wrote the first PP, you displayed the u-shape graph that showed that as cholesterol was lowered past the optimal range (180-200), cancer, depression, accidents, etc, increased. It seems related to me that it would be easier to gain muscle mass in the optimal range, and easier to lose it as cholesterol gets lowered.

Hi LC–

It would seem that way to me, too.

Cheers–

MRE

By: Bruce Kleisner

Bruce Kleisner — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 03:33:05 +0000

I’m with Tracy Bradley. I’ll stay in Spectrum Group 5, thanks, Dean. The only foods in Group 5 that are potentially bad are “fried poultry, fried fish, hot dogs.” The rest are great foods IMO. And an occasionaly hot dog won’t kill you, though I’d get the kosher ones. The problems with fried fish and fried poultry are from the breading, batter, carbs, sugar, and hydrogenated or polyunsaturated oils being used. In general, I believe that Ornish’s “spectrum” is upside down and backwards. I suspect that most here would agree.

By: Kathy

Kathy — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 13:01:48 +0000

Tracy, you asked whether Ornish will ever actually test his dietary plan. Why should he? Everyone knows it’s true and based on sound medical fact.

Walt, “eggs in their natural form” is not such a odd statement. The grocery store sells powdered egg white in the bakery aisle, and there’s even “Eggbeaters” of just whites.

Also, could someone please summarize the thing about Lipitor and the Jarvik ad? The link is to a site where you have to register as a medical professional which I, alas, am not.

I also wanted to mention that I’ve been on Dr. McCleary’s “cocktails” and Vitamin D3 for about a week now, and things seem to be improving mentally and physically. Of course, I’ve also gone back to solid VLC eating. “Do you choose to simply know the path, or do you choose to walk it?” I choose to walk it.

Thanks once again for a great blog!

Hey Kathy–

Fixed your winks for you.

Glad you’re doing well on the McCleary cocktail and vit D3. Just keep walkin’ that path.

Cheers–

MRE

By: Scott

Scott — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 00:14:16 +0000

The biggest fear is that Bill Clinton will be right…. The world’s in a sad place if 5 to 10 years from now we as a populace are still embracing Ornish.

At least the social security problem will be solved – people won’t live as long.

Cheers

By: David MacPhail

David MacPhail — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 23:50:00 +0000

Surprise — Cholesterol May Actually Pose Benefits, Study Shows
I wonder if Ornish et al will respond to this research with the predictable “Despite the fact that cholesterol lowering drugs have been shown to reduce muscle strength and can cause other serious side effects, patients should not discontinue their use because the benefits outweigh any risks which should be considered minor” statement? Bets down.

“ScienceDaily (Jan. 10, 2008) � If you�re worried about high cholesterol levels and keeping heart-healthy as you get older, don�t push aside bacon and eggs just yet. A new study says they might actually provide a benefit.

Researchers at Texas A&M University have discovered that lower cholesterol levels can actually reduce muscle gain with exercising. Lead investigator Steven Riechman, assistant professor of health and kinesiology, and Simon Sheather, head of the Department of Statistics, along with colleagues from The Johns Hopkins Weight Management Center and the Northern Ontario School of Medicine, have recently had their findings published in the Journal of Gerontology.

Hi David–

A couple of readers have commented on this study already. It would be interesting to see Ornish’s comments. I suspect they would be as you predicted.

Cheers–

MRE

By: Jordan

Jordan — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 23:02:04 +0000

So Ornish is basically saying that high fructose corn syrup,
pastries, cakes, cookies, and pies are healthier than red meat, egg yolks, organ meats, butter, cream, and tropical oils. Wow. The vegetarian bias could not be more evident.

Also, I thought it was funny that he wrote: “egg whites in their natural forms.” Natural forms? Huh? Sorry, Dean, I’ll take my eggs the truly natural way: with their yolks.

Yeah, old Dean has to be a real contortionist to try to make sense out of these recommendations.

Cheers–

MRE