# Diet and nutrition



## hermanchauw (May 12, 2010)

Any sound Christian nutritionists here?

What do you think of Paleo Diet and other non-conventional diets like Metabolic Typing, Atkins etc?

What do you think of vegetarianism?

What do you think of carbohydrates and grains?

Thanks.


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## buggy (May 12, 2010)

I'm no nutritionist, but I studied on them a little bit...

No to vegetarianism - I believe it lacks many key nutrients that meat can otherwise produce. Carbs are only good after a workout - too much of it -> turns into fat. And from what I heard, complex carbs are the best option - I'm now eating oatmeal for breakfast and trying to dump white bread, etc. and only eat rice sparingly.


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## Bern (May 12, 2010)

Diets like the Atkins diet are fad diets and only work as long as you are on them. Generally diets that work by cutting out carbs are not good for you. The body needs carbs for energy, and if you starve it of them for too long the body will start to break down your fat into ketones for energy (good) which is accompanied by terrible bad breath!

As soon as you start eating carbs again your body will lap them up and pile the fat back on, often worse than it was to begin with. 

Having said that, moderate carb reduction is fine.

Vegetarianism is ok as long as you get a good variety of veg. Pulses are you only real source of protein, so you'd have to make sure you eat plenty of things like beans, lentils etc. Vegan diets are not so good as you wouldn't be able to eat fish (such as tuna), which is great as a protein and healthy fat source.

The only thing that will get the fat off permanently is lifestyle change, not a fad diet.


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## Christoffer (May 12, 2010)

For me, just counting the calories has worked well. I eat anything, just not too much. Exercise didn't help until I changed my diet.

And I didn't do any fancy counting, I just made some rough estimates. It sounds more difficult than it is.

Once you do it that way, if you eat only a salad for lunch, you can feast on burgers and fries in the evening. No need to "avoid" anything in particular.

I now see my post is not much related to the question in the OP


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## hermanchauw (May 12, 2010)

Let me be more specific in my questions. What do you think of these with regards to *health*, not fat loss? I am not concerned with fat loss but with general health.

Paleo assumes that we were hunter-gatherer therefore we need to eat like them. But scripture shows us that we were not hunter-gatherer. So in the light of what we know about ancient diet in scripture, can we conclude Paleo is a good diet?

When did ancient humans start cultivating and eating grains? When God said "every herb bearing seed" (Gen 1:29) is to be for food, does it include grains? What is herb bearing seed anyway?

When did humans invent cooking? When did humans start to eat starchy food that require cooking, like beans or legumes? Did Adam and contemporaries cook their food?

After the flood, did all humans become carnivorous? How much animal protein did the patriarchs eat? Some alternative diets recommend a meat based diet. The example of Daniel having a fairer countenance after eating only pulse and water, is it the exception rather than the norm? Did Daniel request pulse and water because the royal diet included unclean meats as mentioned in Lev 11? Has Daniel been vegetarian only in the king's court or all his life?

Oh, btw has anybody read the Maker's Diet? Any reviews on it? I have a friend who recommended it to me but i haven't got to get it yet.

And has anybody came across dherbs.com? He seems quite knowledgeable regarding nutrition, but he is not a Christian.


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