Dr Perricone - Forever Young
Well it didn't take long to figure out the next leg of our quest to get healthier. I happened on a Dr Oz show that I had recorded back in February. It had Dr. Perricone on the show and I felt he was speaking directly to me. He believes that diet has everything to do with health and beauty. It is a no-brainer when you think about it, but I do not think the average American has any idea how the odds of attaining a healthful diet is against them. People have an idea that they can consume burgers, pizza, hot dogs, sodas, etc., and then eat it with a little lettuce and tomato to balance the diet.
I saw a couple in the doctor’s office recently. They were probably in their 80's. The woman looked extremely frail but has a huge belly, severe osteoporosis, and I suspected she might be fighting cancer or something. Her husband asked her what she wanted for lunch and she started rattling off fried chicken, spaghetti and sausage, chicken fried steak, then for the vegetables, mashed potatoes and mac n' cheese. Amazing. Then I overheard her tell the doctor she was trying to eat better and was adding greens to her diet every day. If this woman thought she was eating healthy and he diet had nothing to do with her condition, she was sadly mistaken.
Back to Perricone. I bought several of his books and started learning things right away. Perricone believes that inflammation is the key to bad health. This is extremely simplified, but basically many foods in the American diet cause inflammation in the tissues that cause the mitochondria (base cell structure) to die off or distort. A host of diseases including obesity, Alzheimer’s, multiple sclerosis, diabetes, atherosclerosis, cancer, Chrohn's disease, myocardial infarction, allergies, psoriasis, septic shock, and arthritis - to name a few. In addition to the diet, stress and toxins can also contribute to the inflammation. When the basic cell structure becomes compromised, the body ages faster and cannot fight off disease. Most of these conditions can be reversed with proper nutrition.
One eye opener was that fat, once it becomes 20% of the body or higher, becomes an endocrine system on its own and secretes 200 hormones that basically send out signals for the body to store fat. Fat causes fat. I always felt that was going on. My fat cells just grab on to incoming fat and get stuffed directly to my stomach and thighs. I bet I have fat cells the size of oranges.
Although his research is not about dieting and weight loss, he believes that obesity must be tackled first so the body has a fighting chance to deal with the other issues at hand. After all, how can the body process correctly when all of these hormones are calling all fat to the table?
He dedicated one chapter to weight loss and has reported that persons have lost as much as 25 pounds in one month without loss of muscle. The diet mainly consists of having two "Metabolic Meal Replacements" drinks daily and a meal consisting of salmon, lentils, salad with watercress, vinegar and olive oil, and a serving of cruciferous vegetables.
His drink is made from 1/3 cup of mixed berries - OR - 1 tsp. on non-dutch-processed cocoa mixed with stevia and a little hot water blended smooth. Add to that 1 tsp. virgin coconut oil, 6 ounces of protein powder and blend in a blender. He does not mention a particular brand of protein powder or whether it should be mixed with water, juice or milk. He does mention a packet of Metabolic Formula Supplement which is available on his website.
The formula is made up of CoQ10, L-Carnitine, Omega-3, Glutamine, Niacin bound Chromium (NBC) to stabilize blood sugar, Conjugated Linoleic acid (CLA) and Curcumin gel capsule (turmeric).
It sounds like something we can easily do. Elsewhere in his book, he talks highly of watercress, stating a bowl of it should be eaten daily. He speaks highly of Turmeric. I can understand not wanting to eat it daily so the Curcumin supplement makes sense. There has been a lot of conflict around coconut oil but recent discovery shows it actually helps to reduce cholesterol in the blood.
The book I am reading is called, Forever Young by Nicholas Perricone, MD. and his web site is called http://www.perriconemd.com.
Harry and I plan to start on this diet May 1st so stay tuned.
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