 |
| i.telegraph.co.uk |
This book may not appeal to
individuals who are in denial about the dangers of their eating habits and
those of their children. Many will do anything to continue their love affair
with disease-causing foods and will sacrifice their health in the process. Many
people prefer not to know about the dangers of their unhealthy diet because
they think it will interfere with their eating pleasure. They are wrong.
Healthy eating can result in even more pleasure. If you have to give up
something you get pleasure from, your subconscious may prefer to ignore solid
evidence or defend illogically held views. Many ferociously defend their
unhealthy eating practices. Others just claim, “I already eat a healthy diet,”
even though they do not. There is a general resistance to change. It would be
much easier if healthful eating practices and the scientific importance of
nutritional excellence were instilled in us as children. Unfortunately, children
are eating more poorly today than ever before.
Most Americans are not aware that the
diet they feed their children guarantees a high cancer probability down the
road. They don’t even contemplate that eating fast-food meals may be just as
risky (or more so) as letting their children smoke cigarettes.
The 1992 Bogalusa Heart
Study confirmed the existence of fatty plaques and streaks (the beginning of
atherosclerosis) in most children and teenagers!
You wouldn’t let your children sit
around the table smoking cigars and drinking whiskey, because it is not
socially acceptable, but it is fine to let them consume cola, fries cooked in
trans fat, and a cheeseburger regularly. Many children eat doughnuts, cookies,
cupcakes, and candy on a daily basis. It is difficult for parents to understand
the insidious, slow destruction of their children’s genetic potential and the
foundation for serious illness that is being built by the consumption of these foods.
It would be unrealistic to feel optimistic about the health and well-being of
the next generation when there is an unprecedented increase in the average weight of
children in this country and record levels of childhood obesity. Most ominous
were the results reported by the
1992 Bogalusa Heart Study, which studied autopsies performed on children killed
in accidental deaths. The study confirmed the existence of fatty plaques and
streaks (the beginning of atherosclerosis) in most children and teenagers! These
researchers concluded: “These results emphasize the need for preventive
cardiology in early life.” I guess “preventive cardiology” is a convoluted term
that means eating healthfully.
Another autopsy study appearing in
the New England Journal of Medicine found that more than 85 percent of adults
between the ages of twenty-one and thirty-nine already have atherosclerotic
changes in their coronary
arteries. Fatty streaks and fibrous plaques covered large areas of the
coronary arteries. Everyone knows that junk foods are not healthy, but few
understand their consequences—serious life-threatening illness. Clearly, the
diets we consume as children have a powerful influence on our future health and
eventual premature demise. There is considerable data to suggest that childhood
diet has a greater impact on the later incidence of certain cancers than does a
poor diet later in life. It is estimated that as many as 25 percent of schoolchildren
today are obese. Early obesity sets the stage for adult obesity. An overweight
child develops heart disease earlier in life. Mortality data suggests that
being overweight during early adult life is more dangerous than a similar
degree of heaviness later in adult life.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk.... this is really horrible. Better switch back to vegetables!"
Copyright ©Joel Fuhrman MD –Originally appeared in Eat to Live by Joel Fuhrman MD
No comments:
Post a Comment