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Wednesday, September 26, 2007

A Good Old-Fashioned Low-Carb Roundup

What a week for conglomerated low-carb blogging with this and this post wrapping up some of the latest news and headlines in the world of low-carb living. Well, I'm still in busy mode and have so much to share with you, I barely know where to begin. So let's just have ourselves a good old-fashioned low-carb roundup! YEE HAW!

INSPIRED BY DIABETES WANTS YOUR CREATIVE SUBMISSIONS

There's a really neat contest sponsored by the diabetes awareness web site located at InspiredbyDiabetes.com. What they are looking for are submissions by people who have been touched by diabetes that shares their story through some form of artistic talent, including essays, poems, photographs, drawings, and musical composition. It's called the Creative Expression Competition and they are awarding a Grand Prize of a $5,000 contribution to the diabetes-related charity "Life of a Child" and a trip to the Inspired by Diabetes art exhibition. The deadline for entering is January 31, 2008, but don't delay in sharing YOUR diabetes story in this most unique way! You could even share how livin' la vida low-carb is keeping your disease in check--that'll wake 'em up, don't ya think? :D Winners will be announced in the Spring 2008.

DANA CARPENDER DISCUSSES EXERCISE WHILE ON A LOW-CARB DIET

If you exercise, then you need to eat your carbs right? Well, not so fast says low-carb expert Dana Carpender in her latest nationally syndicated column entitled "Keeping up your stamina while lowering your carbs". The bottom line is unless you are training for athletic competition (like this Olympic athlete who recently e-mailed me), then you DON'T need to "carb up" prior to exercise. Read what Dana has to say about people who are wanting to get in a little physical activity while on their low-carb lifestyle.

IS WONDER BREAD GOING OUT OF BUSINESS BECAUSE OF LOW-CARB DIETS?

Interstate Bakeries, the maker of such high-carb foods like Wonder Bread and Twinkies, is in trouble again after deciding to close up shop in Southern California because of "the low-carb diet craze" (YOU GOTTA LOVE IT!). I've blogged about how livin' la vida low-carb is making Interstate bite the dust (confirmed by this market analysis of their bankruptcy last year) just as it has for Krispy Kreme doughnuts in recent years, too! It's just another sign that the late great Dr. Robert C. Atkins has left an indelible mark on our culture that will continue to be felt for generations to come.

THE MIGRAINEUR RAILS AGAINST THE ADA'S POOR ADVICE FOR DIABETICS

I think I've found a new favorite blog for you to check out: The Migraineur. I only recently discovered this AMAZING blog because of an awesome post chastising the American Diabetes Association (ADA) for being "no friend of the diabetic." WHOA! Why have I never heard of this blogger before?! WOW!!! I think the following quote from the blog post says it all:

"If you wanted to deliberately devise a diet that would cause a diabetic to die a slow, painful death, you couldn’t do better than the diet currently recommended by the ADA. The organization’s insistence on a high-carbohydrate diet, in the face of mounting evidence that diabetes is better managed by limiting carbohydrate consumption, would be laughable if it was not endangering the health and the very lives of the people it claims to advocate for."

This is something I've recently blogged about and even highlighted comments made by low-carb researcher Dr. Richard Feinman along the same lines. The Migraineur blogger says it was that New York Times article by Gary Taubes that led him to start livin' la vida low-carb! Yet ANOTHER reason to Celebrate Gary Taubes Week!

IS THE FDA FORCING CHOCOLATE MAKERS TO USE VEGETABLE OIL, NOT COCOA BUTTER?

In one of the most bizarre food stories I've seen in a while, it appears the geniuses at the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) have put out a call to the major chocolate companies letting them know they need to replace the cocoa butter in their chocolate with vegetable oil. Have you heard about this? It's in response to some industry groups who are afraid of the saturated fat content in cocoa butter causing health problems as well as making it cheaper for the consumer. But THANK GOD at least ONE company has told the FDA where they can shove it: Mars, makers of Snickers and M&M's. This isn't about making better products, it's about reducing quality just to make things cheaper. That doesn't make it better and they had better not mess with my favorite sugar-free, low-carb chocolate bar made with cocoa butter!

900-POUND MAN NEEDS FORKLIFT, FIREFIGHTERS TO BE RESCUED FROM HOME

Have you seen the opening scene of the Adam Sandler movie I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry? There's a burning building and a frantic woman cries for someone to help save her baby who's still trapped in the apartment. When they reach the kid, it turns out this "baby" is a morbidly obese 700-pound man who is bedridden. The scene is pretty hilarious with the firefighters, played by Sandler and Kevin James, getting crushed under the weight of the man while trying to save him.

That scene flashed across my mind as I read this story about a group of firefighters in Lansing, Michigan who had to chop a hole in the side of a 900-pound man's house to rescue him after a nurse said he needed medical help as soon as possible. They even had to implore the use of a forklift to get the 33-year old man out. It turns out he has a rare condition called Prader-Willi Syndrome like the infamous obese 8-year old named Connor McCreadie does.

This story reminded me of the 500-pound truck driver who also had difficulty getting rescued by emergency workers because of his weight in July. It's so sad to hear the helplessness of people like this and it makes you wonder if these traumatic experiences make ANYTHING click inside their mind to finally get their weight and health under control. You have to wonder.

BARILLA PASTA COMPANY NO FRIEND OF THE LOW-CARB LIFESTYLE

Some people in the low-carb community have hailed the Barilla brand of whole wheat pasta as an excellent alternative to regular pasta for people on a low-carb diet. But have you seen this diatribe on the dangers of low-carb dieting posted right there on their web site? It's obvious to anyone with half a brain that their "concerns" are nothing more than the same old tired excuses that have been proven to be myths time and time again. For that reason alone, I would say AVOID Barilla and just stick with the good stuff--DREAMFIELDS!

Well, that's about it for now, but I still have lots more to share with you as I continue catching up to so much stuff to blog about this week. THANK YOU for your devoted readership of my "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb" blog and I look forward to your feedback on these stories. Come talk about them at my forum, too!

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6 Comments:

Blogger Cedar Acre Lady said...

I happened to catch Gary Taubes on Good Morning America and it was very good. I can't believe so many people can't understand the insulin/fat factor in their diets. The science sure makes sense. I'll be getting his new book today to add to my wonderful LC library.

9/27/2007 10:40 AM  
Blogger Psipsina said...

Hi! I'm the Migraineur - thanks so much for the link, and for the kind words. Yesterday was my highest traffic day ever, thanks in large part to your reference. So thanks.

One clarification - I am female. :) The migraines, which often have a connection to a woman's menstural cycle, led to a diagnosis of PCOS, which in turn led me back to low-carb, which is where I should've been.

Here's a link to my acutal blog. (I only use the Blogger account I signed in with so I can comment on other Blogger blogs.)

9/27/2007 11:01 AM  
Blogger Psipsina said...

P.S. I heard that bit about chocolate a few weeks ago and thought I would cry. (I occasionally indulge in a small square of high-quality chocolate with a cacao content of 70% or higher.) And you know that when they say "vegetable oil," they are not talking about healthy virgin coconut oil, either.

The Migraineur

9/27/2007 11:04 AM  
Blogger Jimmy Moore said...

THANKS Psipsina! You'll probably get even more traffic today, so ENJOY! :D

I appreciate your comments and welcome you to the conversation. KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK!!!

9/27/2007 11:30 AM  
Blogger Pot Kettle Black said...

Good for Mars, but big deal. The manufacturers of the good stuff (Michel Cluizel, Guittard, Vosges, Amadei, to name but a few) will continue to use cocoa butter and not worry about sat fat content. Even if it's about cost, a producer like Cluizel or Amadei is about the quality of the product first, and we know that poly unsat vegetable oil doesn't produce the same flavors as saturated fat cocoa butter, a natural derivative of, yes, a real fruit/vegetable, the cacao plant.

As with everything else, buy quality and leave the worrying to others. Cortisol is not your friend in continual doses.

9/27/2007 1:25 PM  
Blogger Jimmy Moore said...

I agree about the cost being a NON-factor to people who want REAL chocolate. That's why I enjoy ChocoPerfection bars so much. :D

9/27/2007 1:36 PM  

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