Archive for July 2009
Are Women Only Gatherers?
I think not! (HT: Karen)
Read MoreTales of Bad Science and Media Bias
Before I begin, please take the 2 minutes and 27 seconds necessary to watch this ABC news report. I'll get back to that in a bit; but first, I'm sure you heard the news: Eating Animal Fat May Lead to Pancreatic Cancer!!! Oh nos! Yea, already a half dozen emails and a Facebook message or two. But guess what? This is the same study that was More Stupid Nonsense by Rashmi Sinha, PhD; Amanda J. Cross, PhD; Barry I. Graubard, PhD; Michael F. Leitzmann, MD, DrPH; and Arthur Schatzkin, MD, DrPH, then, and it's simply a lot more accumulated stupid nonsense now. The bottom line: the aforementioned cretins are frauds and liars. What other conclusion can you reach? I'd love to deconstruct this for you, but, Tom Naughton of Fat Head fame has already done a more than adequate job of exposing the aforementioned frauds and liars. And what an amazing study this has turned out to be. So far it has indicated that being overweight in middle age will kill you, a lack of physical activity can increase your odds of breast cancer, red meat will give you colon cancer, alcohol can lead to pancreatic cancer and fruits and...
Read MoreNew Zealand Frenched Rack of Lamb
That was dinner last night for friends. I chose to do the rack on the grill, indirect, low, with a temp probe. This rendered the air around the racks around 250, just where I like it in order to get that medium rare right to the edge and not just the center. Once the rack got to 120ish, internal, I went full high on both burners, brushed both sides lightly with the glaze I had reduced from beef stock and bit of lard & duck fat (and very slight bit -- 1/3 tsp -- of chopped jalapeno that I later strained out). Then, we turned 'em a few times as the temp rose to about 125-128 internal, then let 'em rest for about five minutes before slicing, glazing, and garnishing with freshly grated parmesan. And a final close-up (click on 'er to enlarge).
Read MoreNew Pics
Many have bugged me to update the photos (now) to the right. Beatrice is still complaining, but until she comes up with something, this is what it is. While looking for stuff, I used iPhoto's facial recognition, and one of the ones it came up with was an old one from a trip to Hawaii in 2005. Wow, what a no-neck, carb-face whale I was. The new face was cropped from this photo of Beatrice and I on the cruise last week. P.S. The design shifted to this new column arrangement as I gear up with the developers for the near-term move to WordPress.
Read MoreLinks and Quick Hits
~ Mark Sisson demonstrates the rendering of beef tallow from suet via two different methods. I'm gonna have to give it a try. ~ Dr. Eades takes you through the ins & outs of evaluating your cholesterol numbers after eating low-carb for some time. "This study, published in the prestigious American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, demonstrates that subjects following the low-carb diet experience a decrease in triglyceride levels and an increase in HDL-cholesterol (HDL) levels; and that these changes are accompanied by a minor increase in LDL-cholesterol (LDL), which prompts the authors to issue a caveat." For the most part, my view is to greet the former with welcome and disregard the latter. ~ Karen De Coster takes you step by step through an urban workout in downtown Detroit. Lots of cool pics. ~ You're gonna hear a lot more about fatty livers in the coming years, as even kids are being diagnosed with them, now. Too much fructose. Another thing that cases a fatty liver is excessive alcohol consumption. They make a distinction between the two, but based only on the cause. Clinically, I'm not sure there's much, if any difference. At any rate, Stephan has now racked up...
Read MoreReligion & Culture vs. Humanity & Health
Those (few) who used to follow my political blogging know that it was often heavily anti-religious (to the consternation of many of my political-philosophy soul-mates). Though still steadfastly a non-believer -- "I don't believe in Zeus, or any of the Gods that came after" - Richard Dawkins -- my attitude about the whole thing has changed stylistically. Now, I essentially put it in the same general boat as agriculture, i.e., agriculture making things like Big Statism, Big Corporatism, and Big Religion (all steadfast bedfellows -- or honor-bound thieves, take your pick) possible. Decentralized religion -- call it tribal myth -- lacks the power to harm lots of people, as Big western religions used to do (at least as antagonists) -- but Islam still does. So what does this have to do with health & fitness, you ask? Glad you asked. Well, one of the blogs I've been linking to in my Quick Hits posts is that of Don Matesz (husband of and co-author with Chef Rachel). I'm woefully behind in my reading, but finally got to Don's post pointing to this one from a very interesting person, which I'll get into in a moment. That post is about the whole...
Read MoreWhat Causes More Cavities: Refined Sugar, Refined Wheat, or Refined Corn?
Answer: They all cause a hell of a lot of them. But you'll need to click that link to find out the surprising winner. How many do meat, fat, and vegetables cause?Zero. Now, go get your kids off that crap. But, hey, "they're 'just' teeth," right? Well, sure, I guess; but I prefer to think of it as adverse mineral metabolism. You think it only applies to teeth? Ever heard of osteoporosis? Ever heard of calcification of the arteries? More: my posts on vitamin K2.
Read MoreLost Souls
Wow, is this ever eye opening, in The New York Times: Eating to Fuel Exercise I don't think she gets even one thing correct, and most of the commenters are equally misled. One gets it dead right, however. ...Your readers are told to eat energy bars (read cookies with vitamins) which cause your insulin to rise, causing a hormonal response WHICH SHUTS OFF FAT BURNING. And these readers wonder why they are doing all this exercise and getting no results. I regularly exercise in a fasted state. I then wait an hour to benefit from my body’s release of growth hormone after exercise which help my muscle grow. Low insulin levels are my partner in keeping a normal weight. Little wonder that America and the world is fat and getting fatter, even while exercising more. Update: I'm comment #177.
Read MoreCholesterol Con: Call for Help
I frequently get emails from fairly new paleo / primal / low-carb practitioners worried about their newly obtained lipid panel that supposedly shows a degradation, particularly in the form of elevated total C, and/or elevated LDL. Often, these emails read something like this: "I've eliminated grains, legumes, processed sugars, vegetable oils, processed food of all kinds, and starchy vegetables like potatoes while adding more vegetables of varied kinds, more berries and less sweet fruits, more eggs, some nuts & seeds, free range eggs, grassfed beef and other meats, lots of fish & seafood, more butter and other natural fats. I've lost 25 pounds, I feel great, I sleep wonderfully, my blood pressure is way down and I have been able to drop meds for seasonal allergies..." Now, given the above, realize that there are tons of doctors who will berate, caution, cajole their patients for these behavioral changes, simply on the basis of a lab number -- and in particular -- totally disregarding the patient's own feelings of enhanced health and well being. So, I need to put together a single static page that can be frequently updated as more and more resources come out about the great cholesterol con....
Read MoreCooking and More Cooking
This is dinner, two days in a row. Saturday at the parent's-in-law in Vista, CA, I did a prime rib low & slow, along with a slow beef broth reduction containing fresh garlic, shallot, and jalapeno pepper, strained at the end. My sister-in-law prepared a nice salad with toasted sunflower seeds. I dressed it with EVOO and fresh lemon. Rounding out the meal was chopped cauliflower sautéed in coconut oil, which was a big hit. Returning home in San Jose yesterday at 1pm, I decided later in the afternoon to cook dinner for our friends who were some hours behind us in their own drive up I-5 from LA. I had a tri-tip in the freezer, so that made it an easy choice. Took the bike down to the local market for some cauliflower, a parsnip, garlic, shallot & jalapeno pepper. Again, a slow beef broth reduction with the shallot, garlic and pepper sautéed in leaf lard. Rounding it out was a cauliflower and parsnip purée. Simply boil 'em up in proportions you like, strain, and pop in the food processor with butter & cream to taste. Didn't get a photo but I will next time. And, finally, tri-tip done...
Read MoreIt’s Said That “It’s Good to be King”
I say it's better to be loved. Our dearest of friends, neighbors, card playing, cooking and party partners, Robert & Julie (who make it like a regular Seinfeld episode around our places at the lofts almost daily). They're actually down here in SoCal visiting mutual friends Alessandro and Robert -- the two doktors -- in Hollywood. Unfortunately, that's a coupla hours from Vista, still, and with the doggies, it just 'aint gonna work out for an all-together visit this time. We did -- the six of us -- spend a 4-dayer up at our cabin last September, and that has to definitely be on the near horizon. So, that's my far more important "happy happy" message to you today than the typical flag waving stuff. Sorry, but I'm just not into Gambino Appreciation Day. That's a link outta Billy's place, who has his own comments, after the quote. He 'aint celebratin', either. "Independence day?" Listen up: cultivate a wonderful family (we just celebrated my parent's 50th on a cruise; all four of the litter, with mates), and get yourself some really kick-ass friends. ...And let the neolithic zoo animals go to hell.
Read MoreBack in the loop and wiped out.
Just a brief note to announce that I'm back from the cruise (though still in SoCal), getting back into the swing of things, and have gobs and gobs of emails and other stuff to get through. It's doubtful that much is happening before the holiday weekend. Back in full force next week, however. Here's a shot from last Monday, at anchor, Catalina Island.
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