Breakfast, Lunch And Dinner

August 7, 2018

Breakfast, Lunch And Dinner

I remember many years ago when some friends of mine were “doing” the Atkins diet. The diet consisted of the idea that fats were good and carbs were bad. At the time, our family was doing almost the opposite in that we were limiting our fat to 15% of our diet with the thought that fat makes you fat (remember Susan Powter? Yea, that diet). Ironically, both diets worked for both groups, at least temporarily.

The Type of Fat is Important

Knowing what I know today, I realize that both diets missed in one huge way > the type of fat that you eat was the most important factor. In my observation of my friends and their Atkins journey was that they would eat virtually anything that was high in fat, this included a burger from McDonalds without the bun and without the vegetables (carbs). They would eat the processed meat with the processed cheese with the added mayo and dairy was good too. It sounds so crazy to me now, but that is what they were doing. Bacon, cheese, meats, anything was good as long as it was low in carbs. There was zero emphasis on Organic or the types of fats to consume.

Protein Risk

The extremely high protein was also a huge concern and was a major hidden health risk of this diet. Today we have a similar diet to Atkins called Ketogenic, (at least this diet has a high focus on proper fats). The key here is to not make the mistake of thinking that you can consume all the animal fats you want (and the protein that goes with it) without consequence. In the book “THE CHINA STUDY”, they conducted a massive study on animal protein and the effects on cancer growth. I will only give you a brief outline but the results were eye popping. Animal proteins (more specifically cows milk) were given to rats that were also exposed to a carcinogen (carcinogens are known to be in processed meats and BBQ meats). Rats given 20% protein saw huge increases in cancer rates and were dead or near death within 100 weeks and the rats that were given only 5% proteins were alive and well. Limiting the protein from animal sources is obviously the main point here. The researchers then asked the question “would plant based proteins provide the same results?” The answer was NO! The direct quote from page 51 of the book was “In these experiments, plant protein did not promote cancer growth, even at the higher levels of intake.”

I really can’t do the book justice in this short blog, so all I can do is give the book a MUST READ recommendation! On the back cover of the book there is quote that is the basis of my title, it states “THE KEY TO A LONG, HEALTHY LIFE LIES IN THREE THINGS: BREAKFAST, LUNCH AND DINNER” and I would add that what we put in our mouth matters, it is the most important thing you do everyday. I often say to my friends EAT REAL FOODS! McDonalds, Wendys, Taco Bell and Tim Hortons have to be avoided in order to do that. Even when these establishments bring out their supposed healthy alternatives, the quality is just not there; and I assure you that virtually zero of these alternatives are Organic.

I believe the evidence is piling up that the ideal diet consists mainly of whole grains, vegetables, fruits, nuts/seeds, with small amounts (less than 10%) of fish, poultry and dairy products.

As promised in my last blog post, I want to give you a excellent recipe for the hiking trails. I am not sure where I got this recipe originally, but I have modified it considerably over the past year. These are what I call breakfast cookies but they are certainly excellent for the trails.

All Ingredients are ORGANIC.

Ingredients 

  • 1 ½ cups oats
  • 1 cup coconut flakes
  • 1 egg
  • ¾ cup chopped mixed nuts
  • ½ tsp pure Himalayan sea salt
  • ½ cup raisins
  • 2 ripe banana’s
  • ¼ cup Coconut oil
  • 1 tsp pure Almond extract

Directions

  • Mix all the dry ingredients together and add them to the mixed/mashed wet ingredients
  • Bake at 350 for 20-22 minutes

Here is a fresh batch that I cooked the night before this post. If it is not obvious in the picture, these are fairly large cookies (about 2 inches across). Eating 1 or 2 of these and you will be satisfied for a while.

Certainly you can reduce the size as you prefer. I also like mine a little more on the darker side, so adjust your cooking time accordingly. You can also add a tablespoon of honey if desired, but I prefer not to add any additional sugar.

Thanks for reading and happy hiking! 🙂

About the Author

John Cheyne

Food as Medicine

Calgary

John spent his early years in the welding/fabrication industry and then spent 15 years in the beverage can industry manufacturing beverage cans for Coca-Cola, Pepsi,...

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