suggests that Americans would probably be healthier, as a whole, if they consumed:
• Only sufficient calories to meet body needs and maintain desirable weight
• Less saturated fat and cholesterol
• Less sugar
• Less salt
• Relatively more complex carbohydrates, such as whole-grain cereal, starchy vegetables, fruits
• Relatively more poultry, fish, and legumes( for example, beans, peas, peanuts) and less red meat. The report continues: … The processing of our food also makes a difference. The American food supply has changed so that more than half of our diet now consists of processed foods rather than fresh agricultural produce.… Increased attention therefore also needs to be paid to the nutritional qualities of processed food. EFFECTS It is difficult to assess the effects of this dietary approach because its boundaries are imprecise and its adherents difficult to identify. The recommendations are obviously sensible, although for some they may be too mild and for others much too strong. It seems to me that if present trends continue, the R. D. A. and the fortified natural-foods diet( see this page) will eventually become almost parallel. In addition to the S. A. D. and the R. A. D. there are a number of other diets— much more specialized— often known by the names of their proponents, that swing our metabolic pendulums this way or that. Let’ s take a look at the better-known ones. THE PRITIKIN DIET Nathan Pritikin, the late scientist, inventor, and founder of the Pritikin Center in Santa Monica, California, discovered a way to cure his own cardiovascular ailments through diet. He did this by simply cutting down drastically his consumption of fats and salt, reducing his intake of animal protein and sugar, and increasing his consumption of complex carbohydrates. He then systematized his experiences and introduced his approach to food and exercise to the general public through his best-selling books. The Pritikin Center can point to numerous cases of remission of hypertension, atherosclerosis, diabetes, constipation, and other common modern health problems. IT CONSISTS OF:
• Whole grains, beans( except soybeans)
• Vegetables: fresh, canned, or frozen( except avocados and olives)
• Fruit: fresh, cooked, canned, or frozen( except coconut), and unsweetened; small amounts of dried fruit( limited because of its high sugar content)
• An average of about three ounces daily of lean meat, skinless chicken, or fish
• One glass of skim milk and two ounces of nonfat green Sapsago cheese or creamed cottage cheese are permitted daily
• Linden tea
• Egg whites if desired( Exercise is also an integral part of the Pritikin Program, but we will not be commenting on that for the purpose of this book.) IT FORBIDS: All fats, oils, avocados, olives, salty meats, fish, poultry, full-fat dairy products, and soybeans; table salt and prepared foods containing it; refined carbohydrates, such as sugar, honey, molasses, fructose, and bleached white flour; white rice and pasta except in very limited amounts; caffeinated drinks( coffee, tea, cola, and so on); whole eggs and egg yolks; alcoholic beverages and soft drinks. 6 IT IGNORES: No major foodstuffs. PRITIKIN TABLES OF OPPOSITES CONTRACTIVE
EXPANSIVE
Grains Cooked vegetables Beans Meat, fish, fowl( when used) ACID-FORMING Grain, fish, fowl, meat
Raw fruits Raw vegetables Tomatoes, lemon, spices Egg whites ALKALIZING Fruits, vegetables