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If Fructose Is So Bad – Should I Eat Fruit?

With all the nuances of dietary recommendations from keto to paleo to vegan to who knows what else, one thing is clear: there is absolutely no need for added fructose, or any sugars for that matter, in the human diet. And there is an ever-expanding body of research that clearly points out the incredible threat that fructose poses to human metabolic health. Fortunately, many people are getting this message and doing what they can to almost eliminate, or at least substantially reduce the amount of fructose that they consume.

Among the highest sources of fructose in the human diet are sugar-sweetened soft drinks and fruit juices. Statistics are clearly demonstrating that consumption of these beverages, at least here in America, is declining, no doubt because of the increasing recognition of the health threat posed by fructose. Continue reading

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Another Reason to Avoid Fructose

Is high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) really as much of a problem as people would like us to believe? And in fact, what about fructose in general? After all, the actual biochemistry of fructose metabolism does not activate insulin, and therefore it might not be as big of an issue in terms of representing a health threat compared to other sugars, like glucose or dextrose. Right?

Well, let’s dig into the science a little bit and see what we can learn. In a new study published in the Journal of Hepatology, researchers wanted to explore how fructose, sucrose (common table sugar, which is made up of 50% glucose and 50% fructose), or glucose affected the body in terms of some fairly important parameters like the generation of fat in the liver.

The study evaluated the effects of these sugars in 94 healthy young men over a seven-week period. The subjects consumed, on a daily basis, drinks containing fructose, sucrose, or glucose, 80g per day, or a drink that did not contain sugar. Continue reading

Getting the Answers

Last month, you may have seen a post on my Facebook page about an interview I had done with Medscape. A few weeks later, the interview was made available to the general public on WebMD. The main focus of the interview was to allow me to explain how and why gluten and carbohydrates represent such a powerful threat to the human brain.

Now that the article has had a chance to disseminate across the internet, I’ve seen a flood of comments from medical practitioners, industry experts, and interested individuals, asking questions, providing anecdotal evidence, offering support, and much, much more. So, I wanted to take an opportunity to acknowledge some of these comments, offer thanks, and provide some answers. (All comments sourced from the posting on Medscape).

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Questionable Foods

Since the release of Grain Brain a few months ago, I’ve seen a number of question come in about whether or not certain foods are permissible on the Grain Brain diet, below is a list of some of those most common ones, as well as information on how permissible these are in a diet geared to boost brain health:

  • Einkorn wheat, Ezekiel bread, and similar products: Visit the FAQ section of my site
  • Rice: Along with some other non-gluten grains, rice can be consumed in strict moderation. The list of non-gluten foods on this site is a helpful resource in this case.
  • Fruit: Overall, fruit plays in an important role in a well-rounded diet that is geared towards brain and body health. However, because of the sugar content, you should always be wary of the fruits you’re putting into your body. If you’re going for fruit, trying grabbing a handful of berries, or similar low-sugar fruit.
  • Bacon: Generally, I am not a fan of bacon.