Health Archives - More Letters to the Corinthians

Passports

Funny how few of us can still do elementary school math. Don’t believe me? How about a test? Let’s assume the province of Alberta would like to make this covid thing disappear. Pretty good objective. But how would they do it? Probably involves using some math. Let’s start with assumptions.

Alberta has a population of 4.5 million
Herd immunity, the point where the virus stops travelling, is 75%
Natural (unbridled) contagion rate is 40% per year
Total population infected as of May, 2021 is 12%
5 actual cases = 1 recorded case
7,500 actual cases (non-vaccinated) = 12 people in ICU
7,500 actual cases (vaccinated) = 1 person in ICU
70% double-vaccination rate

That’s all you need to know to figure this out. Population is easy because it’s on Wikipedia. Herd immunity was told to us at the start. The 40% contagion rate can be found by looking at the US (33% as of May 2021, with some lockdowns). Canada’s May, 2021 rate was provided by Jason Kenney on Twitter, May 12th (and makes sense considering we locked down much more than the States). 5 cases to 1 regarding actual to recorded was provided by Alberta antibody tests back in June, 2020. (It’s been adjusted based on who and how many get tested.) ICU rates for vaccinated and non-vaccinated have been provided by a reliable source and can be proven by a look at the data. And the 70% double-vax rate is found on the Alberta website. So these are the parameters. What’s a province to do?

Math

First we must calculate how many people have already had it:

4.5M X (12% + 4% to bring us to Sept 1st) = 720,000

Then figure out how many more to arrive at herd immunity:

(4.5M X 75%) – 720,000 = 2,655,000

If we let this virus run wild, how long will it take to reach the above number:

(2,6M X 40% = 1.1M the first year) + (1.5M X 35% = 525,000 the second year) + (1M X 30% = 300,000 the third year) + (700,000 X 25% = 175,000 the fourth year) = 2.1M. So we’re short 500,000 after 4 more years.

Number of ICU beds required for the first year:

(1.1M X 70% X 1 in 7,500 = 102) + (1.1M X 30% X 12 in 7500 = 528) = 630 ICU beds

Number of ICU beds required for the first year if everyone was vaccinated:

(1.1M X 100% X 1 in 7,500 = 146 ICU beds

In terms of ICU, Alberta has only 200 beds. That’s all we staff and the amount that’s usually good. This quantity can rise to 250 in special situations but the system is designed for 200. ICU is used for accidents, real life emergencies, and people coming out of surgery. Accommodating the extra 500 for those who remain unvaccinated puts an obvious strain on the system, especially when they come in waves (e.g., 90 in the past two weeks). Overloading ICU then forces government into lockdowns or some other restrictive measure. And you know, people are getting sick of it.

If missing the shot, the odds of an infected person requiring ICU is 12 in 7500. That’s pretty slim. But once you consider that almost everyone will be getting this, and we have to let it run wild at a rate of 100,000 per month, it’s not unreasonable for healthcare professionals to be pushing the vax. As of today, if every person had the dose this drama would be over.

Without sufficient vaccination rates, covid will be with us another four years, and I don’t know many who can handle the opening and closing much longer. It’s bonkers. If you watch US news, you know the fight over freedom. My body, my choice. But those particular states have way more ICU capacity than us. For example, adjusting Texas population to Alberta, we would have over 1,000 units. And if Alberta had that many spaces, we wouldn’t be talking. That’s why the US has been letting this run wild for a long time. As of now, they’re 40-45% through. More than half way. But in Alberta we have only 200 beds.

Summary

Health officials know exactly what they’re doing. It’s their job. Casualties created by virus are not the responsibility of government but maintaining a dependable healthcare system is. And they need you to understand that combatting this crisis isn’t about deaths, it’s about ICU.

Officials have already determined that herd immunity must be achieved whether by vaccine or anti-bodies. Yes, vaccines all but eliminate the damage but they don’t stop the spread. So it’s really up to you. The RCMP won’t be coming to your door to force you into a clinic but if we don’t get sufficient numbers vaccinated, this event could drag on for years. That’s why they’re implementing passports. Big rulers want this over. (And so do you.)

Bottom line: getting the vaccine in Canada isn’t about emotions or freedom, it’s about practicality. Americans have their own fight.

Note: Obviously figures presented are rough estimates but hopefully you get the point. Individual chances for the unvaccinated are remote but cumulatively they’re clogging the system. Modern governments won’t leave our sick waiting in the parking lot, whether it’s another covid patient or a 10-year-old with asthma. So we’ll continue opening and closing around hospital capacity, which cannot be changed.

Schools

Now that everyone has become a master of medical statistics due to this pandemic, I’d like to provide a few more. Alberta just released its results from antibody tests conducted in May. As of May 20th: 36,000 Albertans have had the virus, under 7,000 were reported (meaning 20% felt ill enough to be checked) and under 200 people have died, average age 84.

Pushing these numbers further you see that 4 out of 5 people barely noticed they had it, and very few have died–primarily through pneumonia, which is how many of our elderly pass away. Those who die of old age usually have multiple conditions. One could have diabetes, COPD, poor kidneys, liver problems, or a weak heart. Pneumonia itself is rarely the demise, it’s its effect on other organs that usually takes you down.

Anyway, pretend you’re the premier being presented with these figures. What would you do? The ongoing quasi-lockdown? 36,000 is almost 1% of Albertans so at max it’s 20,000 people. But with viruses everybody doesn’t get one. The real max is only 60-70% because that’s what’s called herd immunity. Viruses need a host to live in. And as infected hosts build antibodies this bad boy has less of a chance to move on. (If I cough in the face of 10 virgin people, potentially all ten could get it. But if a bunch already have the antibodies, there’s a much smaller chance. That’s why the fire burns wild at the start. Tons of virgins. But according to medical statisticians, at 60-70% all viruses peter out. And this could take 100 years.)

Anyway, it gets more complicated because today’s experts only budget for the first 12-18 months. After that they figure help will arrive and ill effects drastically reduce. The high-end percentage used in this case was 20%*. That’s what Canada used in its worst-case scenario when calculating initial models. But a more reasonable number is 10%*. That’s more probable as to what will happen. So it becomes 2,000 Albertans, average age 84, and many people die from multiple conditions.

At best you’re saving 1,000 lives. Couple this with the economic and psychological cost of what’s going on and ask yourself if it’s worth it? There’s no question people are hurting out there and we can’t live on government aid forever.

One more statistic: these requirements that cities are imposing for mandatory masks and social distancing will be with us another full year. Yes, a full year. At best, Canada will see a vaccine by July 2021*. And of course, it could be later.

Schools

Children suffer by not being allowed back in school. They’ve already missed 3½ months and then it was summer holiday. To ask them to sit out another full year would be harmful.

But we’re afraid these little guys will be spreaders? That’s why they’re not allowed to play with their friends? They could get sick and give it to me? Well, I had pneumonia when I was 18 and thought it was only bronchitis. My organs were good. (Even now they’re still good.) People in decent physical health should not be worried about this virus, let alone feel terrified. And I hope the majority of those considered vulnerable support kids going back to school. Even better, I hope they lift the restrictions placed on the go-back programs because children need to play, they need to be in class, and they naturally need to get sick. In the end, it’s the vulnerable who will grant them permission.

Note: Sweden’s kids never left and Germany’s went back on June 15th, for two weeks. Listen to this podcast.

Numbers

No doubt you’ve felt the ongoing panic these days over the coronavirus. Pandemics don’t come along often and this might be a good one. Maybe good enough to change the world. Remember, nothing brings out human instincts like a natural disaster—both awful and awesome.

In a military war you can see the bullets coming. Physical evidence lies before us and we know the enemy. But with a virus it’s like fighting a ghost, you’re guarding against somebody else’s air. And this leads to some pretty weird behaviour. People you’ve known for years start looking at you like a potential disease. So yes, this could be bad but let’s put it in perspective.

Medically speaking, only five things can happen. You’ll either:

miss the virus

get a mild case
get a bad case, which makes you sick at home
get a serious case, which takes you to the hospital—and you survive
get a serious case, which takes you to the hospital—and you don’t

That’s it. Only five things. So the question becomes: what are my odds? What are the odds for my family and friends? And how about a bunch of people I’ve never met?

Statistics usually deal with the average person but in this case it depends upon your health. So for our example we’ll use the average person in good health, a group which is stronger (i.e., the young), and the more vulnerable. According to unofficial estimates, here are the figures.

Getting it

Maximum spread of this virus is 70%. That’s the absolute max. And since our average person is washing their hands and practicing self-distancing, this percentage gets cut in half.

	Average	Strong	Vulnerable
Getting it	Less than 50%	More than 50%	Less than 20%

The young come in contact with more people so their chances are higher. Those susceptible will obviously take extra precaution so their chances are lower. And if everyone does exactly what the government is asking, the risks go down for all. (Did you hear that kids?)

But if you get it, your odds look like this:

	Average	Strong	Vulnerable
Mild case	80%	95%	50%
Sick at home	14%	4%	34%
Hospital and live	6%	1%	16%
Hospital and not	1 in 20 of those who go to the hospital	1 in 50 of those who go to the hospital	1 in 5 of those who go to the hospital

The good news is average people have a 94% chance of getting off easy. The bad news is our vulnerable have a serious chance of getting very sick. They could get a mild case, but the odds of not surviving a bad infection are high.

2X flu

What do we know about this virus? It’s kinda like the flu. More contagious and stronger, but still like the flu. On the other side we have citizen participation, worldwide research and technology, and an awesome healthcare system. This will be a fair fight.

And no matter what happens the situation will yield a universal and Canadian mortality rate. For Canada, let’s guess .03% (with a decimal point). Now .03 doesn’t sound high but that’s still a lot of people, around 10,000. So the idea of slowing this thing down is right. Everyone deserves a proper shot at healthcare. But for the sake of numbers, 10,000 is also 2X the flu.

Panic

Every year the flu kills a large number of people. Last year in the US it was 80,000 and the WHO says globally it’s 290,000-650,000. Can you imagine if we tracked it? Old timers sitting by TV sets watching the numbers rise? Not good for a variety of reasons. Mental health is one, but more importantly panic can bring on health problems caused by anxiety like heart conditions. Not good during a time when we need beds. And if you assume this won’t crest until mid-April, we have 3-4 more weeks. So you’re not doing anyone any favours by freaking out grandma.

What’s best for our current system and the overall outcome is for everyone to remain calm. That being said, panic also serves a purpose. Sometimes you have to scare people into complying and that job has mostly been done.

So is this situation real? Yes. Should we follow government guidelines? Absolutely. But adjust your panic accordingly. That’s what’s best for everyone. I’ll bet my scientific reputation on it.

The 15 Minute Diet

Ever wonder why diets eventually fail and we go back to our old ways? Maybe it’s because there’s too much to remember. If so, here’s something you’ll never forget:

5 minutes hunger
5 minutes concentration
5 minutes sweat

Welcome to the never-ending diet. It’s easy, and you’re officially on the program. Feel hunger for 5 minutes a day, focus on health 5 minutes a day, and do some form of daily exercise. Once in the habit, you’ll be doing two or three at the same time.

Hunger

People think hunger means to get food; that pangs are telling us to eat. Well, that’s only part of the story. Hunger is also the feeling of fat being burned. No different than a dentist working on a tooth, your body needs to feel discomfort while being repaired. So yes, pangs do message to get food, but they’re also saying, “In the meantime, I’ll eat this.”

And everyone knows excess calories get stored. So when do they have a chance to burn off? Big eaters like me have meat on our thighs from things we ate back in kindergarten. Bottom line: it’s good to feel hunger. Let your body heal for 5 minutes a day. (Smoking is the same sort of thing. Cravings for nicotine are just the feeling of lungs being cleared, so allow yourself to feel them.)

Concentration

Ever wonder why some religions pray five times a day? It’s to maintain focus. Believers repeat objectives over and over until they become ingrained into their mind. Maintaining focus is a big part of success and you really can change the world by what you think. So ponder personal health for 5 minutes a day. Not unreasonable, given we get 24 hours.

And start early. When opening your eyes in the morning, what’s the first thing that pops into your head? It should be health. What good-for-me things will I be doing today? Once going, you’ll become an annoying health nut in no time.

Sweat

My personal trainer used to say, “It doesn’t matter how long you stretch; I want to see water coming from your head.” And that’s what it takes. Feel your body exert itself every day. Not for a long time, but for some time.

Pumping a Bowflex, running on the spot, or chasing around the cat, all work to help your body make moisture. And believe it or not, you’ll become a snob in a flash – making fun of those sitting around doing nothing.

Summary

Health has to be part of every day. No way around it. The components of eating right are already well known—lots of protein, not too much sugar—and daily exercise really is medicine for the body. The trick is to maintain focus. That’s why health always slips away. But not anymore. Because no matter how lazy you feel, one can always think.

Sugar

No doubt you’ve heard about low-carb diets. They’re the new wave crashing dieter nation. But there’s something you need to know about carbs before starting: they’re not all created equal. Namely, sugars are worse than starch.

To get technical, sucrose (or table sugar) is made from fructose and glucose. Fifty percent each. Starch (e.g., rice, bread, potatoes) is only made from glucose and here’s the difference. Fructose doesn’t metabolize well, so most calories go straight to fat. With glucose most go to energy.

That’s why modern nutritionists say a calorie isn’t a calorie. It’s because of how they metabolize. And in terms of metabolization, fructose is like alcohol. That’s why people get beer bellies.

But fructose is the sugar found in fruit? That’s right, and fruit is okay because the goodness in fruit outweighs its fructose. Besides, how many plums can you eat. Scientists only disparage the sugar we put in things like baking, candy bars, fruit juices, and pop. These are the culprits. And you’d be amazed by how many processed foods have it.

What about high fructose corn syrup? Isn’t it even worse? Yes and no. It’s a commercial sweetener made from corn that’s cheaper than what comes from cane. And you know how sugar is 50/50? Well HFCS is 55% fructose, 42% glucose, and 3% something else. So in terms of fructose it’s ten percent higher, but both are bad for us chubby people.

And now that we’re talking carbs, there are two types of starches. Ones made from flour (e.g., pasta and bread) and those that exist naturally (e.g., rice, potatoes, and corn). Obviously natural are better since they contain good things like vitamins, minerals, and fibre.

So there are three types of carbs. The worst is sugar (because of fructose). Second are foods made from flour. And third are natural foods that just happen to be starchy.

Dieters need to know these differences before starting any new program. Beginning with too many items on the restricted list often leads to failure. Start your focus with sugars and then eliminate from there. In the meantime, pass the potatoes.

Don’t Eat, Just Cheat

Old time dieters constantly struggle with how much they eat. Controlling intake is always what brings us down. So here’s the trick: two small snacks plus one full meal—that’s it.

Remember the old SlimFast plan: shake for breakfast, shake for lunch, and a sensible dinner? That’s what we’ll do but without the shakes—let’s use healthy friends instead.

Half fast

Snacks are required to get you through the day and should be eaten with intent. This way, no matter what you have for supper, you’re good. Try yogurt, protein, and fibre. Yogurt is good for the tummy because of probiotics (good bacteria), things like carrot sticks can never do you harm, and cheese or a handful of nuts fills you up. This way you get only goodness from the day.

Hunger pangs need to be addressed with protein and not right away. Let your body munch on fat for a while. And you don’t need to eat first thing. Our night long fast can continue until done. So eating breakfast isn’t necessary.

True fasting is stressful and we’d all starve to death (eventually). What we need is a plan that limits intake. So wake up with fasting in mind and then cheat from there. It may take a few days to adjust, but once you get going—it works. (And that’s what dogs do.)

Body as a friend

Psychologists always talk about gratitude. That we should be thankful for every day. You know what I’m grateful for? My body. I’ve abused this vessel for years, always placing it somewhere down the list. Maybe it’s time to care for my friend.

Separate body from self and imagine your body in need of relief. It’s been dragging you around for a long time and may need a break. Time to catch up. You have loads of calories stored up that need to burn off.

Treat your body like a friend. Eating less means sleeping less and you’ll gain energy. Energy that’s now being used to digest. Remember, weight loss is a byproduct of living well. So to lop off pounds, you gotta love Big Joe (Julie, Frankie, or Jill).

First thing

When you wake up, what’s the first thing that goes through your mind? Mine was food.

The road to bettering your body includes fixing mental health and, believe it or not, you can rewire your brain. It’s the power of positive thinking and everyone can do it. Make the first thought of your day to control food intake and then continue from there.

Success comes from focus and this is your chance. Yes you’ll feel pangs, but they’re less painful than recovering from surgery. So why wait until something breaks? Move your body’s priority up to top of the list.

Summary

There’s a scene in the movie Crash, where a mother blames her oldest son for her younger son’s death. She says, “You know whose fault this is? Yours. I always told you to bring your brother home (from the streets), but you were always too busy being successful to ever get that done.” Think of this as a warning to yourself.

Rise with good thoughts, eat only two snacks a day plus one full meal, and exercise when you can. This way you’ll sleep less, have more energy, and your body gets to make a friend.

Doctor Oz

I recently read Doctor Oz’s diet book and though the jokes were terrible, it’s good advice. The whole thing nets out to the Core Diet plus a few special guests. Remember, the core diet says these six foods should be at the core of your diet:

Beans, fish, and white poultry
Fruits and vegetables
Water

Oz’s special guests are:

Whole grains
Red chili pepper (especially with eggs in the morning)
Yogurt
Fermented foods (like pickles)
Honey
Cinnamon
A handful of nuts

Dr. Oz says whole grains in the morning keep you full well into the afternoon. He especially likes steel cut oats, but any high-fibre cereal is good. He also likes chili pepper with eggs for the same reason. (I like those crushed hot chilies by Tutto Calabria.)

Yogurt and fermented foods contain probiotics, which are good for digestion. Honey and cinnamon are great regardless of reason. And a handful of nuts is his biggest recommendation. He says they contain 15% less calories than the label says and because it takes 25 minutes for your brain to register that you’ve actually eaten something, a handful of nuts is a great way to avoid hunger—especially before dinner.

So meal planning now breaks down like this:

Breakfast

whole grains (like high-fibre cereal or steel cut oats)
eggs with chili pepper
yogurt with fruit

Snacks

apple, carrot, yogurt, handful of nuts

Lunch / dinner

chicken, fish, or lean red meats with vegetables
bean soup, bean dip, bean salad
cream puffs with cinnamon

Drink a bunch of water, exercise 30 minutes a day (walking is fine), and have sex as much as possible. Oh, and he says coffee is good.

P.S. If you don’t like cream puffs, try cinnamon on cereal or toast.

All About Exercise

Exercise is by far the most dreaded word in the dieter dictionary. We so hate gym-freaks telling us how good they feel after their workout that we secretly wish them all pulled muscles. It’s not that we dislike nature’s physical aspect; it’s that we don’t want the freaks to be right.

Exercise does two things: it burns calories and it makes you feel better. Burning calories is beneficial for weight loss. For example, if you burn an additional 200 calories per day, you’ll theoretically lose one pound every two weeks without changing an eating habit. Feeling better is wonderful regardless of size. Not only do you have the ability to do more but fitness guards against nagging health problems—like a sore back. So heavy people should long for the benefits of fitness as much as anyone.

So why don’t we do it? Why won’t we exercise? There are three reasons: We think exercise is painful, we feel it has to be done too often, and (unfortunately) most of us are lazy.

Exercise is painful

Everyone is familiar with the expression: no pain, no gain. Well, other than in the bedroom, most of us don’t really like pain. Frankly, we fear it. We’re simply not the weekend warrior type and literally have no desire to painfully be the best that we can be.

The idea that exercise has to be painful is ridiculous. There is absolutely no need to feel pain on the road to health. The pain most people experience is from working with weights. Experts and trainers want you to weight train because it builds muscle. Their reasoning is that muscle burns more daily calories than fat. But what their thick heads don’t understand is that fat people aren’t the bodybuilder type. We’re never going to become classic jocks. And the pain of working with weights usually scares us away from the gym forever.

People do things they enjoy. Remember school recess. Running around feeling happy and free. That’s what exercise is suppose to be like. So only do workouts that you enjoy like, walking or playing a sport. Maybe try volleyball, bowling, table tennis, or golf. The objective is simply to enjoy being active (otherwise you’ll quit).

It must be done too often

We’ve all heard experts say that unless a program is carried out at least three times per week it’s essentially useless. So we figure, why go through all the pain of the first few workouts when we know we’ll never be able to keep it up?

Don’t listen to that baloney. That’s for athletes. For us, it’s wonderful to get in any type of exercise whenever we can. Walking to the mailbox, stretching in front of the TV, doing the dishes, almost anything qualifies. Just get off the couch and move.

Sure joining a gym gives you some place to go, and partaking in a regularly scheduled program makes exercise part of your routine. But, more importantly, you have to believe that any exercise is better than no exercise.

Most of us are lazy

Go to a gym. How many fat people do you see? Very few. That’s because we’re characteristically sedentary, slow moving, couch potatoes. Exercise and being athletic is simply not our style. Most of us were never good at athletics in high school and many of us don’t even watch sports on TV. So how do we get over this hurdle when we don’t like to jump?

A famous author once coined laziness as original sin. I’m not sure he’s totally correct but it’s certainly a major problem. The way to combat laziness is to get up and move. Get going on the job at hand. Stop psyching yourself out by looking at the whole job in its entirety, just do something. Don’t worry when you’ll finish, don’t stress over perfection, just get started. You can always stop.

For example, if you’re lying beside a pile of laundry that needs folding, pick up a facecloth and fold it. It’s not a big deal. Chores are simply part of life. Sure you’re fat and no one understands that you suffer from low energy, but for goodness sake you can fold a facecloth.

Approach all work the same way. Shut off your mind and simply get started. You’ll find the tendency to procrastinate disappears once you get your head right.

The best thing you can do at the gym is show up. If you show up, you’ll take one step. Then if your body wants to walk—it will walk. If it doesn’t—it won’t. Your mind’s job is simply to take one step.

And shut off your brain the moment you get going. You don’t want to hear yourself nag while trying to enjoy a workout.

Rules

For most people, there are three rules when it comes to exercise:

Enjoy your workout—if you don’t, you’ll quit
Any exercise is better than no exercise
Combat laziness— just get started

Your workout should be easy, fun, and possible. Don’t sabotage it with pain or fancy expectations. Only include exercises that you enjoy and do them only for as long as it feels comfortable (you don’t have to push yourself). Little stretch before, little stretch after, and you’re good.

The problem with so many programs is that they put you in a hurry, they’re too results oriented. Relax—you’re trying to make peace with exercise for life.

Personal trainers are great for taking someone who’s in relatively good shape and getting them into great shape. They’re not for people like us. They’re too focused on results. Our biggest goal at the gym is to show up—not a great match.

But they’re good teachers, so ask them about proper stretching techniques and all the different exercises available. But if they get pushy, give ‘em the finger (it’s your life).

Summary

The first two rules are easy to adopt but taking on laziness is a constant battle. Remember, it’s all about getting started. You’ll probably begin by walking slow for a short period of time and then nature will take you from there. Eventually you’ll feel like walking a little faster and maybe a little longer. In the end, you’ll arrive at a practical workout that you enjoy and that works for you.

The Core Diet

Most diets agree that we should eat as little crap as possible. This means less junk food, donuts, cookies, baked goods, chocolate bars, candy, french fries, pop, ice cream, etc. (all the things that make a good party). And almost everyone agrees that a certain group of foods are good for us (e.g., fruits and vegetables).

If we take this consensus and merge it with what we’ve learned about elements, we arrive at what I call the core diet.

Foods that should be at the core of your diet are:

Beans, fish, and white poultry
Fruits and vegetables
Water

Just think of it—this makes total sense. Beans, fish, and white poultry are the lowest-fat forms of protein. Beans, fruits, and vegetables are loaded with fibre, vitamins, and minerals. And water gives us something to drink.

This doesn’t mean that you can’t put sugar on your strawberries or noodles in your soup. It simply means that the core foods should be the ones you eat most. Eat only these six items and you’ll be Twiggy in no time. All other foods can now be divided into two categories: Tier II and Tier III.

Tier II foods

These are the foods closest to the core. Since eating only a core diet may be somewhat boring, we’ll borrow from this group for the sake of variety (and besides, we like being bad). They are:

Dark poultry and lean red meats
Some eggs, a few nuts, and a little cheese
Most starches
Fats for flavour
Low-fat milk and a little fruit juice

Dark poultry and lean red meats (e.g., most ham, extra-lean beef) are close to the core diet in terms of being low-fat, low-cal sources of protein. They’re not as low, but they’re close.

Eggs are great except they’re high in cholesterol. Nuts are filling but high in calories. And cheese is filling but high in both cholesterol and calories. So, eggs, nuts, and cheese have benefits, but we have to be careful with them.

High-starch foods like bread, cereal, rice, pasta, and potatoes are fun to eat. Even though they carry higher caloric loads and are unnecessary for proper nutrition, they can still be eaten (in moderation) for the sake of fun.

Since a little dietary fat is recommended, let’s use fat to flavour our meal rather than as our meal. We have to include low-fat milk since water on cereal sucks. And a mouthful of fruit juice here and there isn’t going to kill you (but you shouldn’t be drinking it by the glass full).

Tier III foods

Tier III foods are the ones furthest from the core diet. They’re all the crap that doesn’t provide us with any nutrition or fill us up. These are the ones lowest in caloric-fill and caloric-nutritional value. They’re also the ones everyone agrees should be reduced in or eliminated from your diet. They are:

Fatty red meats, fatty cold cuts, sausages, and hot dogs
Crackers
Excessive and unnecessary fats
Most condiments and sauces
Junk food and greasy appetizers
Donuts, cookies, and baked goods
Desserts
Chocolate and candy
French fries
Ice cream
Pop, most fruit juice, all other sweetened drinks, and excessive alcohol

Fatty red meats like ribs, sausages, salami, and hot dogs contain way too much fat (and therefore cholesterol and lots of calories) to be eaten on a regular basis. There are so many ways to enjoy beans, fish, poultry, and lean red meats that fatty red meats are completely unnecessary.

Crackers are usually starch made with high concentrations of fat, so they’re bad for us.

Fat for flavour is fine, but too much fat is fattening. Examples of excessive fat include putting too much dressing on your salad and using butter on your bread.

Most condiments and sauces are simply flavoured sugar. High calories—gotta go. But there are exceptions, like mustard and relish.

Junk foods are starches fried in oil. Most appetizers like chicken wings, zucchini sticks, cheese sticks, and nachos are also deep-fried—so they’re bad too.

Donuts are starch fried in oil. Cookies, baked goods, and desserts are typically starch (flour) mixed with sugar and fat. Now I ask you, “Is this what we should be eating more of?”

Most chocolate is high in sugar and fat, and candy is sugar. French fries are another starch fried in oil, and ice cream is sugar mixed with fat again.

Pop, fruit juice, chocolate milk, pink lemonade, etc., etc. are all sugar in water. Sure, fruit juice has vitamins, but you don’t need them when you eat right. So it turns out to be sugar in water as well.

Beans and Fruit

Everyone knows about the benefits of vegetables, water, and low-fat proteins, like chicken and fish. Let’s complete the picture by talking about beans and fruit.

Beans

“Beans, beans, the magical fruit. The more you eat the more you . . . toot.”

I can’t believe how many people bypass the beanery. Sure, there are plenty of jokes out there but man, get over it. Every culture in the world enjoys beans on a regular basis except for ours.

We either don’t like beans or can’t get enough of them. Advocates think they’re a magic elixir, and abstainers figure a forkful will blow a hole in their pants. Don’t fear the barbarian. Get over the complex and eat beans on a regular basis. (They’re yours to discover.)

Check out the soups, salads, pasta, and dip recipes at www.firstyoustealachicken.com

Frozen, canned, or dried

Most times you can’t get good fresh fruit, so screw it—go for frozen, canned, or dried.

Frozen berries are good left to defrost in the fridge and placed over top cereal or yogurt. They can also be added frozen to hot oatmeal. Canned peaches, pears, and pineapple are awesome. And dried fruit is a great way to get more mango, apricots, and even cherries into your life.

The trick to getting all your vitamins and minerals is to eat a variety of fruits and vegetables. So enjoy them all ways—fresh, frozen, canned, or dried. (You’re going to be so healthy.)