Chapter
2-1 of Healing Foods by Walter Last
FOOD GROUPS
CARBOHYDRATES
There are three groups of carbohydrates:
starches, dextrines and sugars. Sugars consist either of simple sugar
molecules, the monosaccharides, or two of these linked together as
disaccharides. Household sugar (sucrose) consists of one molecule each of glucose
and fructose, while milk sugar or lactose contains glucose and galactose. In
dextrines up to 50 glucose molecules are linked together, and in starches
several thousand.
Starches
Starches are broken down into water-soluble dextrines
by cooking, sprouting or fermenting. Dextrines occur naturally in sweet
vegetables, and in seeds during germination and ripening. Examples are green
peas and sweet corn. The basic starch foods are cereal grains, potatoes, sago,
taro, tapioca and to some degree also the non-oily legumes. On the one hand,
starches are excellent slow-digesting food, on the other hand our digestive
systems have not yet well adapted to a diet high in grains, especially in those
with blood group O.
In our society, wheat is predominantly used.
However, gluten, the protein in wheat, often acts like sandpaper on the
absorption villi in the small intestine, and this is a main cause of
malabsorption, intestinal inflammation and allergies. All of us are to some
extent affected by gluten and in this context wholemeal products are no better
and usually worse than refined flour. Therefore, it is generally recommended
that you use only a minimum of wheat products and that you also be careful with
the other gluten grains, mainly rye, oats and barley. Oats are very high in
gluten and in this way not much better than wheat.
Rice and millet may be used as staple grains. Maize and potatoes are
valuable additions, especially for those allergic to wheat. Buckwheat is
generally good, but causes problems in some gluten-allergic people. Potatoes
should not be peeled or only the skin removed after cooking. Small potatoes and
the mineral-rich outer parts are preferable to the acid-forming inner parts.
Legumes are best sprouted. Cooked dried beans often cause wind. This may
be reduced if you discard the soaking water and possibly replace the cooking
water after 20-30 minutes. Sago and tapioca are especially suited for individuals
who are not doing well on grains. However, tapioca needs to be peeled, as the
outer parts tend to contain cyanide compounds.
Sweet Food
The term 'sweet food', as used in this book, includes sugars, sweetened
food, dried fruit, sweet fresh fruit and the juices of sweet vegetables. It
does not include the sweet vegetables themselves - carrot, onion, sweet pepper,
turnip or red beet as their sweetness comes mainly from dextrines and they
release any sugars slowly. Most commonly used sugars quickly enter the
bloodstream and cause a serious strain on the blood-sugar regulation. It is
important for our wellbeing to keep the daily fluctuations in our blood sugar
level as small as possible. For people with a poor sugar metabolism, this means
restricting the intake of sweet foods to the barest minimum.
However, a poor blood sugar metabolism is not restricted to an
inappropriate rise in the blood sugar level. An equally dangerous component is
a high insulin level especially after ingesting sucrose and, to a somewhat
lesser extent, when combining glucose with fructose. A high insulin level
either leads to a strong fall in the blood sugar level sometime later
(hypoglycemia) or to conversion of sugar into fat. With this, it either leads
to overacidity or overweight. A third outcome is increasing insensitivity to
insulin and diabetes type 2.
However, maltose or barley sugar, made from sprouted barley, should have
a less harmful effect if used to sweeten starches. It consists of two joined
glucose molecules and does not induce a strong insulin response but it would
still cause a stronger rise in the blood sugar level than unsweetened starches.
Some of the symptoms associated with a poor sugar metabolism are
overweight and underweight, high or low blood pressure, heart disease,
arthritis, diabetes and hypoglycemia, dental caries, colds, allergies, weak
eyes, cold hands and feet, lack of energy, over-sensitivity and overacidity.
For most individuals sweet food is harmful, because sugar is released
too quickly. Therefore, sweet dessert or sweetener eaten with protein or fatty
food is less harmful than sweet food such as fruit juice) taken on an empty
stomach or as sweetened starches (for example, sweet porridge, bread with
honey, cake). Most affected are individuals with low blood pressure,
sensitivity to cold and skin irritants or who are emotionally unstable, while
insensitive individuals benefit from naturally sweet foods.
However, I regard artificial sweeteners such as aspartame as much worse
than any natural sweeteners and would avoided them completely. For more details
on this see the next chapter.
One natural sugar that appears to be
relatively harmless and possibly even beneficial if used in small amounts is
xylitol. It occurs naturally in fruits such as plums and strawberries and
tastes like normal sugar; it also helps to prevent tooth decay and possibly ear
infections and is acceptable for diabetics. However, it may cause diarrhea in
larger quantities, you need to experiment to see how much is acceptable for you.
The Glycemic Index (G.I.)
The G.I. lists foods according to the
increase in blood glucose levels caused by the carbohydrate content 2 – 3 hours
after eating. A high G.I. means a rapid increase in blood glucose levels and
vice versa. Theoretically it is preferable to eat mainly low G.I. foods that
produce a small or slow rise in blood sugar. Fats and proteins do not directly
cause a rise in the blood sugar level.
Here are a few key examples with white bread
used as standard with a G.I. of 100: Glucose and maltodextrin 137, sucrose
(common or household sugar) and rye bread 92, honey 83 and fructose 32. Legumes
and nuts generally have a low G.I.
From this short list you can easily see why I
have no faith in the G.I.: rye bread and sugar have the same G.I! The reason
for this is the low G.I. of fructose. Sucrose consists of one molecule of
glucose and one of fructose. Fructose produces a strong insulin response that
keeps the blood sugar level low partly by converting sugar into fat and partly
by channelling glucose rapidly into muscle cells. Depending on the individual
metabolism, the combination of fructose and glucose in large amounts either
produces overweight or over-acidity. In addition it increasingly leads to
insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes.
Nevertheless, conventional nutritionists use
this to argue that sugar is not really harmful because its G.I. is as low or
even lower than bread. I would not be surprised if it eventually turns out that
the G.I. was developed on the instigation of the sugar industry. Most foods
listed in the G.I. are processed carbohydrates that I do not advise to eat
anyway. If you select your carbohydrates according to the following rules than
you do not need to be concerned with the G.I.:
·
Eat
mainly legumes and vegetables
·
Eat
(fresh) fruits on their own and not with or after meals
·
Minimise sweetened food, grains and cereals
PROTEINS
Proteins from animal sources are vastly
oversupplied in traditional Western diets. Initially this causes stimulation -
you feel energetic and even aggressive - but later in life it leads to enzyme
exhaustion, putrefaction of bowel contents, toxemia, breakdown of the immune
system, gout and cancer. Protein deficiency, on the other hand, causes slow
growth, fatigue and debility.
Good sources of protein are grass juice, fresh or dried, pollen,
spirulina, chlorella, almonds, lentils and other legumes, traditionally
fermented soy products, sunflower and sesame seeds (tahini), raw egg yolk,
naturally fermented and unpasteurized goats’ cheese and yogurt, fish, (organic)
liver and other organ meats.
Use red meat and predatory species of fish in small amounts only. Nuts
are generally difficult to digest, except if soaked. Soybeans and broad beans
should not be eaten raw except if sprouted or fermented. Cooked soybeans may
cause indigestion, except if discarding the soaking and cooking water. Also
processed soy products are not recommend because of their high content of
anti-nutrients and genetic engineering, although traditionally fermented soy
foods are fine.
The best sources of protein are grass juice fresh or dried, sprouted
seeds, pollen, spirulina and chlorella or other edible algae. Individual
protein requirements differ. More is needed during pregnancy, in childhood and
during convalescence. With advancing age and degenerative diseases use any
flesh food in an easily digestible form, such as broth of fish, liver or meat.
It is good to combine legumes with starches as for example, lentils with brown
rice. However, mixing different proteins to obtain improved amino-acid
compositions is generally not required. Preferably have flesh foods no more
than once a day and avoid products from feedlots or containing growth
promoters.
Vegetarianism
Most individuals can remain healthy on a diet
with moderate amounts of flesh food, or as vegetarians without eating flesh
food. However, a strict vegan diet without any animal products is advisable
only if there are no obscure health problems, because some people require
certain nutrients to be supplied from animal sources (such as taurine,
carnitine or vitamin B12).
Vegetarian Hindus may obtain vitamin B12 from stale water,
bacteria in soil and cow dung as well as from insects in fruits and vegetables.
When fruit bats were raised hygienically on clean fruits and water, they became
seriously vitamin-B12 deficient. Spirulina is very high in vitamin B12 and
recommended as a source of this vitamin for vegans.
Generally, sensitive
people have weak adrenal glands and feel more energetic and emotionally
balanced by using flesh foods. If these are excluded, they should have a high
intake of spirulina, bee-pollen, legumes and complex carbohydrates
(slow-digesting food) in their diet.
People with alkaline
and insensitive conditions, on the other hand, benefit from a vegetarian diet,
possibly with some seafood and poultry. A fruitarian diet, based on tree
fruits, nuts and berries, is suitable as a temporary or extended cleansing diet
for alkaline, insensitive individuals.
Many vegetarian diets are not conducive to good health because of a high intake of sweet foods, milk products, wheat, oats and anti-nutrients in a soy-based diet. Furthermore, minerals are better absorbed if the meal includes flesh food or gelatin. A diet high in nuts, oily seeds and cereals can cause a deficiency in lysine (an essential amino acid) and predispose you to herpes and other viral infections; this can be rectified by using more legumes. Individuals with blood group O are basically meat-eater types and have great difficulty with a grain-based vegetarian diet, while those with blood group A can usually live very well as vegetarians.
FATS AND OILS
Oils
are best supplied by eating products in which they naturally occur. Most
recommended is extra-virgin olive oil. Otherwise use cold-pressed oil in
brown-glass bottles. Avoid 'light' oils because they are more highly refined
and also oils sold in plastic bottles. Oils can leach chemicals out of plastic.
Store oils in a cool, dark place and in full containers. Refrigerate oil in
daily use, except varieties that easily solidify.
Preferably,
use only small amounts of saturated fats that are hard at room temperature,
such as fat in hard cheese, beef and mutton, except if these fats have not been
heated. Unpasteurised butter and cream actually are health foods, and also
unheated coconut oil and palm oil are very good. Avoid all chemically hardened
(hydrogenated) fats, including margarine. Use mainly oils high in oleic acid,
such as olive oil, almond oil and, to a lesser extent, peanut oil. Peanut oil helps
against arthritis but is not suitable for insensitive, alkaline people in whom
it may contribute to the formation of fatty deposits in the arteries.
Use
polyunsaturated oils (high in linoleic acid) sparingly if you are sensitive.
They easily oxidize, especially if the vitamin E intake is low, and then
contribute to the development of cancer. However, it is recommended to use more
fish oils or linolenic acid, as in linseed, together with adequate vitamin E.
You may obtain fish oils by eating raw fish, when buying oils, such as cod
liver oil, the label should state that it has been cold-pressed, and preferably
that it has been processed under nitrogen. The stronger the taste or smell, the
more rancid is it.
People
who are insensitive and alkaline (for example, cardiovascular diseases), but
who also suffer from obesity, skin and liver diseases should be even more
careful than others in avoiding hydrogenated and highly heated fats and oils.
They are advised to use lecithin and vitamin E supplements. Really beneficial
are only fats and oils, including saturated fats that have not been heated.
Cod-liver oil rubs are beneficial for fat malabsorption.
FRUITS AND VEGETABLES
While vegetables are good for everyone, the
more the better (except if sprayed with pesticides), fruits must be treated
with caution by those with overacidity and a poor blood-sugar regulation.
Use mainly
fruit and vegetables in season that are grown in your district. Include plenty
of green-leaf vegetables. Gradually increase the amount of fresh raw
vegetables, as in salads. Cook or grate root vegetables with their skins, and
use the cooking water. Red beets are highly recommended for their positive
effect on cell respiration and energy production.
Fruits, especially
acid fruits and berries, are excellent for those with alkaline and insensitive
body conditions, including cardiovascular diseases and often cancer and
diabetes.
Those
who are overacid, on the other hand (usually with low blood pressure, allergy problems,
lack of energy and tendency to colds) easily become even more acid on fruit.
They may minimize fruit and mainly use subacid varieties or, better still,
neutralize acid fruit as explained in The Acid-Alkaline
Balance. Also they may tolerate sweet fruit, such as bananas, better if
they are not fully ripe. Oily fruit such as avocados are usually well
tolerated.
Chapter 2: FOOD GROUPS AND DIETS
· Slimming
· Recipes