Posted
Monday, March 08, 2010
Women who drink a light to moderate amount of alcohol appear to gain less weight and have a lower risk of becoming overweight and obese than non-drinkers, according to a report in the Archives of Internal Medicine. This survey of over 19,000 non-obese women followed up over 13 years finds that those who drink 15 grams of alcohol a day, which is the equivalent to a glass of wine, shot of a spirit or pint of beer, compared to those who drank none, were almost 30% less likely to become overweight or obese. The most positive association was found with red wine, followed by white. A beneficial effect was also apparent at 30 grams a day, but no longer apparent at 40 grams a day.
This finding is broadly consistent with our recent 100% Health Survey of over 55,000 people in which we find mild positive associations in reducing risk of being in poor health among those having one drink a day, although no increased likelihood of being in optimum health. Benefits of light drinking have also been reported in relation to cardiovascular disease risk and Alzheimers.
From a glycemic load point of view I’d be cautious about the pint of beer since this represents 20 GLs - the ideal daily amount for maximum weight loss being 45GLs and 60 GLs for maintenance. On my Low GL Diet I allow 5 GLs a day for drinks or desserts, which is the equivalent of half a pint of beer every other day or a low-carb lager every day (or a glass of wine). This amount of alcohol is also consistent with maintaining a good homocysteine level, while larger intakes raise it. A low homocysteine level also predicts less risk for heart disease and Alzheimers.
Exactly why alcohol has these effects isn’t clear. Various potential mechanism for benefit, as well as clear explanation of the downsides are given in my Special Report entitled The Truth About Alcohol.
I am a full member of 100% Health and I am doing my best to follow the programme but i have a few problems that i need help with. I am a Flight Attendant and spend 15 days a month on the road sleeping in hotels, I am gone for 4 to 5 days at a time, live out of a lunch box. How can I prepare for this? Where can I get a list of all foods and their GL? i’ll start with these questions. Maureen Flanagan
Posted by moe.flanagan@hotmail.com on 03/09 at 08:15 PM
Have you read the Holford Low GL Diet Bible? It has a whole chapter on eating out and what to choose, and not to choose, in restaurants. It also has a comprehensive listing on the GL of foods. This can also be found in the the GL Counter on the website http://www.holforddiet.com. Hope this helps.
Posted by patrick on 03/10 at 07:21 AM
I have a question about the Chinese way of “dieting” / healthy eating. I am always interested to see how other cultures keep healthy through food, and it seems that the Chinese way is to not have anything raw, or very little, as it estinguishes the digestive “burners”. Grain and all cooked foods are very desirable, and very high GL!! In the Patrick Holford low GL diet, raw food is a MUST, and I find this very confusing and difficult to combine and what to take as “gospel”. Please advise!
Kind Regards
Silvia
Posted by S Haytack on 03/28 at 10:18 PM
Hi! Post cardio-version treatment - does the patient have to go with warferin?? What blood tests should be done to determine whether this would be essential or whether there are more natural alternatives to prevent possible blood clotting. If warferin treatment has begun - what is the best process for coming off it again?? Thanks.
Posted by Shirlee on 04/03 at 04:51 PM
Silvia - I don’t think all Chinese dietary principles shun raw food. Very light cooking, such as steam-frying, isn’t going to change the GL of a food much. Some foods, such as oats, seem to change little from raw oats to cooked oats eg porridge state, which something like baking bread makes a big difference. The nutrient availability is enhanced by steaming some vegetables with tough fibres. My motto is raw or lightly cooked.
Shirlee - i suggest you read the section in my book Food is Better Medicine than Drugs (p.289-291 and p.307) that addresses this. There are many ways to thin blood with natural nutrients and diet changes however,any weaning off Warfarin needs to involve measurement of ‘INR’ as the book explains.
Posted by patrick on 04/08 at 01:07 PM
I have been trying some of the recipes from your GL diet cookbook, but when I told my colleague I eat the granola for breakfast, she told me that it is very ‘fattening’. I am now worried about this.
Posted by jilly.richardson@hotmail.co.uk on 05/06 at 11:44 AM
If you are referring to the low GL granola in the Low GL Diet cookbook then your colleague is under the common illusion that the primary cause of weight gain is fat/calories and has seen the nuts & seeds in this recipe and got fat-phobic. As the book explains, by eating a low GL diet, and stabilising your blood sugar you not only stop making body fat, but reverse the process. We have had hundreds of reports of people losing up to 20lbs in six weeks with this approach. There is no need for you to be at all concerned about having this breakfast.
Posted by patrick on 05/07 at 04:54 AM
