Im like everybody else, says ConAgra CEO Mike Harper as he walks into a private airplane hangar. I lead a busy life. In the 1989 commercial Harper tells the camera that after he had a heart attack he couldnt find healthy food that was really great-tasting. So he invented Healthy Choice. Cut to a glamour shot of the low-fat, low-sodium, low-cholesterol frozen dinners: a sectioned oval tray with gravy-covered sirloin tips, a side of baby carrots, potatoes, and a fruit-topped dessert. By the end of the spot, Harper is piloting his little blue propeller plane off the runway.

In the three years following that ad, Healthy Choice would rake in $1 billion in sales. And it was hardly alone. Lean Cuisine, Diet Coke, Crystal Light, Bud Light: Diet food became a juggernaut in the 1980s thanks to a winning combo of government influence, food tech, and good old-fashioned societal pressure to be thin. And in the years following, the industry would only grow. We dont like to call it diet food anymore, but in 2020 foods with a dietary claim made over $100 billion.

From the moment in 1898 when J.H. Kellogg introduced Toasted Corn Flakes to get our digestion on track and help stave off the urge to self-pollute (masturbate), weve looked to food to make us healthier, more virtuous, and, yes, thinner. Has it worked? Not really. So why do we keep expecting it to?

What was going on in the 80s? (Other than leotards)

Lets crack open a can of Diet Coke, put on those leg warmers, and step back in time for a moment. In 1977 a Senate committee released a report telling Americans that they needed to cut the fat, salt, and cholesterol (meat, butter, and eggs) in their diet right nowor else. Those types of food, the report said, directly link to heart disease, cancer, obesity, and stroke. It cited evidence that scholars at the time, and today, said is flawed. The report drove home the idea that taking control of our diets meant taking control of our health. For those who are overweight, the report said, the best protection against heart disease is weight reduction.

Later the U.S. surgeon general and the World Health Organization chimed in with their own low-fat reports, every major newspaper and magazine covered the news, and suddenly all over America, fridges were stocked with watery skim milk and margarine. From 1984 through the 1990s, dietary fat was increasingly blamed not only for coronary heart disease but also for [weight gain] and obesity, writes Ann F. La Berge in the article How the Ideology of Low Fat Conquered America. By swapping your milk, the thinking (but not the evidence) went, youd reduce your chances of heart diseaseand your waistline.

From the moment in 1898 J.H. Kellogg introduced Toasted Corn Flakes to get our digestion on track, weve looked to food to make us healthier, more virtuous, and thinner. Has it worked? Not really. So why do we keep expecting it to?

In response to these reports, the same companies whod sold us fat, sugar, and salt for decades quickly pivoted to selling such delicacies as Lean Cuisine, Healthy Choice, Stouffers Right Course, The Budget Gourmet Slim Selects, Campbells Le Menu LightStyle, and Molly McButter (cholesterol-free butter-flavored sprinkles).

Jenny Craig launched. Cooking Light magazine debuted. Jane Fondas famous workout VHS tapes sold millions. Oprah dragged a Radio Flyer wagon full of animal fat onstage and said, Im gonna live on broccoli now. In a 1983 Glamour magazine survey, 76 percent of women said they were too fat when 45 percent of those same women were considered underweight. Seventy percent of Playboy playmates were underweight, according to a study that went to the trouble of examining the waist-to-hip ratio in 240 nudie centerfolds. Deaths from eating disorders reached an all-time high. In the 80s, writes food scholar Claude Fischler, people dreamed of being thin, saw themselves as fat, and suffered from the contradiction.

Read the rest here:
Diet Foods of the 80s Are Out. But Has Anything Really Changed? - Bon Appetit

The ketogenic dieta weight-loss diet that is traditionally high in animal proteinhas been named the least-healthy diet of the year by a panel of diet and nutrition experts in the US News and World Report annual diet rankings. The experts rated 40 diets on a range of levels, including weight loss, nutrition, safety, and their ability to prevent and manage heart disease and diabetes. After scoring each diet, the experts constructed nine Best Diet categories, including Best Weight Loss Diets, Best Heart Healthy Diets, and Best Diets Overall.

In the Best Diets for Healthy Eating category, keto ranked lowestand very close to the bottom of the list in all other categories except Best Fast Weight-Loss Diets. In addition to being extremely incomplete in nutrition and the hardest of the extremely hard in terms of ease of following, experts had particular concerns about the keto diets high saturated fat content. Any diet that recommends snacking on bacon cant be taken seriously as a health-promoting way to eat, one expert said. Another pointed out that the keto diet is nutritionally unbalanced and likely difficult for most people to stick with long-term, which means that any weight loss will likely be regained.

The keto diet also ranked lowest because it poses health risks, particularly for people with certain medical conditions. People who have kidney or liver conditions, or are pregnant or nursing, underweight, or have heart disease should avoid the diet, the experts warned.

With its combination of unusually high fat plus remarkably low carb content, experts had enough reservations to place the keto diet way down in [the nutrition] category. Experts expressed particular concern for people with liver or kidney conditions, who should avoid it altogether, the ranking noted. The jury is still out [on] whether keto offers more potential health risks or benefits for people with heart conditions or diabetes. With the variety of keto versions and food choices, and different methods for cycling in and out of the diet, hormonal and other changes can vary widely.

Overall, the diet rankings put the Mediterranean diet at the top of the list in both overall and healthy eating categories for its emphasis on fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts, and other healthy faresimilar to a healthy plant-based eating plan, although the Mediterranean diet includes seafood and dairy in moderation. It also scored top spot because its easy to follow and experts point out that it emphasizes healthy foods rather than a list of diet rules.

Meanwhile, the vegan diet ranked #17 in Best Diets Overall. The experts who weighed in on the rankings pointed out that the diet is filling because its rich in high-fiber foods and has both health and environmental benefits, but it can be a lot of work due to added at-home meal preparation. The experts also note that if the individual doesnt follow a sensible plan, they could miss out on important nutrients.

While eating a healthy vegan diet does require some planning, in recent years theres been a rise in vegan alternatives to animal products well beyond the familiar staples of tofu and soy, such as oat milk, nut cheeses, tahini shakes, seaweed bacon, and pea protein burgers, the ranking noted.

Whats also notable is that the vegan diet received top scores in Best Diets for Diabetes (#2) and in Best Heart-Healthy Diets (#4). The experts noted research that found that a vegan diet improves blood sugar levels and helps diabetics reduce the number of medications they are taking. Research also suggests that the diet helps keep cholesterol and blood pressure in check and heart disease at bay.

While the Mediterranean and vegan diets are more likely to become lifestyles, the keto diet has the allure of many other fad diets that promise quick weight loss, but it also includes numerous health risks. A study published last year in scientific journal Frontiers in Nutrition found that the long-term consequences of a keto diet may far outweigh any potential short-term benefits such as quick weight loss.

The published review found that people who follow a keto diet have a significantly increased risk of developing heart disease, LDL cholesterol buildup, kidney failure, Alzheimers disease, diabetes, and cancer. Similar to the information included in the US News and World Report annual diet rankings, the 2021 studys authors discovered that keto diets are particularly dangerous for people who are pregnant or may become pregnantbecause low-carb diets are linked to birth defectsand for those living with chronic kidney disease.

For more about keto diets, read:8 Reasons to Forget Keto and Go VeganAnimal-Heavy Keto Diet Shortens LifespanThis Physician Recommends You Drop the Keto Diet

Nicole Axworthy is the News Editor at VegNews and author of the cookbook DIY Vegan.

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Keto Named the Least-Healthy Diet of the Year. How Did the Vegan Diet Rank? - VegNews

If that New Years resolution of getting in shape has already fizzled out, the team at the YMCA wants to help

Brian is in Franklin kicking the morning off with a little cardio and learning more about their in-person and on-demand offerings.

FRANKLIN, Wis. - If that New Years resolution of getting in shape has already fizzled out, the team at the YMCA wants to help - Both in the gym and at home. Brian is in Franklin kicking the morning off with a little cardio and learning more about their in-person and on-demand offerings.

Brian is learning how exercise and diet go hand-in-hand with feeling better through the YMCAs Weight Loss Program.

Brian is in Franklin getting a look at the state-of-the-art equipment that you can use at your own pace within a team atmosphere.

Brian is in Franklin with hopes of feeling his best, now and far into the future.

Brian is in Franklin learning some movement that will improve balance, muscle strength and flexibility.

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YMCAs Weight Loss Program: Diet and nutrition, sticking to healthy eating - FOX 6 Milwaukee

Joe Rogan is starting his year with steak. Lots and lots of steak. The podcaster and MMA commentator announced on Instagram that he will be adhering to the carnivore diet for the entire month of January, a challenge that he has previously participated in which involves eating nothing but meat. This time, however, he is making one minor adjustment.

"January is world carnivore month," he wrote in the caption. "This time Im adding fruit to this diet. Just meat and fruit for the whole month."

The meat-only meal plan generated a lot of buzz in 2018, when Jordan Peterson revealed that he and his daughter Mikhaila live on only steak, water, and the occasional glass of bourbon, and that they have both seen positive health results as an outcome.

Writer Jack Crosbie tried the carnivore diet back in 2018 when it was blowing up as a phenomenon, and documented his experiences. He lost 10 pounds, but also felt so weak and nauseated during a boxing workout that he nearly threw up. "I have zero energy and it feels, literally, like Im punching under water," he said. "Every time I get hit with a body shot, it feels like Im going to vomit out the entire bag of cement (three days of steak) in my stomach."

While nobody is arguing that protein isn't important when it comes to building strength and muscle, eliminating vegetables from your diet as a source of nutrition is a lot harder to justify. "The removal of all vegetables is not something I would personally recommend, said clinical dietitian Scott Hemingway. "Theres very little science if any science to support any negative effects of consuming vegetables on our overall diet... If people find things that make them feel better or that works for them, Im all for supporting that. However, there really is no science to back these claims currently, and theres definitely no research to determine the potential long-term effects, whether beneficial or harmful, on a fad diet like this."

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Dietitian Abby Langer, R.D. agreed, telling Men's Health: "Even keto or Atkinsas limited as they arestill include vegetables, and you can still have some low-sugar fruits. But the philosophy of carnivore is that carbs, fruits, and vegetables arent healthy. Yes, youll lose a lot of weight... But thats because youre cutting out every other food except for protein."

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Joe Rogan Says He's Back on the Carnivore Diet - menshealth.com

ITS THAT time of the year when everyone you know and their nan vow to go on a diet.

From slimming clubs to keto, cutting out anything worth actually eating to wishing on a "magic pill" that might see you shed the pounds once and for all, there are so many options out there.

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So if youre one of the estimated 26million Brits that jumped on the dieting bandwagon last week, you can be forgiven for feeling confused.

With so many methods claiming to be the "best", diet culture has muddled the simple foundations of fat loss, leaving many of us with larger waistlines than before.

Graeme Tomlinson, known as The Fitness Chef to his one million Instagram followers, rose to popularity for cutting through the nonsense and giving people the tools they need to lose weight without becoming miserable.

Previously a personal trainer but now a best-selling author, Graeme is against any strict rules with weak scientific evidence that tell people to cut out food groups or offer a quick fix.

Here, he outlines the key fads to steer clear of in his new book, Lose Weight Without Losing Your Mind...

Fasting diets have become increasingly popular, for telling people to only eat on certain days of the week, or between certain hours of the day, to cut back on food intake.

Grame said when you look at the body of evidence, there's actually no difference between intermittent fasting and just reducing calorie intake.

If you reduce the window in which you eat, say to just 12-8pm, you're less likely to eat more calories, which makes perfect sense, he said.

However, if somebody chooses to eat thousands of calories within the window, then it's kind of counterproductive.

It's not really based on anything kind of biological or physiological. It's more just kind of a byproduct of reducing the amount of time you can eat.

Graeme said its just another strategy to cut back on calories which can absolutely help with weight loss - but its not some kind of magic formula.

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Some of the slimmest people you know might tell you I just dont eat past 6pm.

Coincidence? Graeme said what time you have your dinner is not proven to have any relevance to losing body fat.

What's important is over the 24 hours, how many calories come in and how many calories you expend.

Limiting late-night eating may help you sleep, however, an often overlooked pillar of health that can promote healthy weight.

A cookie and a mango both have high contents of sugar. But somewhere along the line, the cookie has become the devil.

Graeme said: People put food into boxes and think that you should never eat the cookie because it must be bad, and the mango is good.

But actually, they're both very different kinds of foods that you can include. It's just about understanding the simple differences.

The mango has vitamins, nutrients and fibre. The cookie, while having little health value, is quite simply, delicious and brings you joy.

You can absolutely include both in your diet, Graeme said. A lot of people say there's good sugar and bad sugar, but there isn't. It all metabolises the same. What I would say is just moderate your intake.

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The same goes for carbs, which are thrown out in diets like keto.

Graeme said: Why would you want to cut out bread, pasta and rice when there's no evidence to suggest that they will result in more fat gain?

The argument is that refined white carbs are not as filling due to being lower in fibre.

But Graeme noted a study in which participants only ate white rice and fruits for a period of time and lost an average of 10st each.

Why did they lose so much weight? Because they were in a calorie deficit, Graeme said, adding that carbs are a fundamental part of the diet.

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That new cookbook you got for Christmas has outlined a strict 12-week diet and exercise plan that promises you a new figure.

But be warned - following a very strict regimen could see you run out of enthusiasm fast, and you might not actually learn anything in the long-run.

Graeme said: When you get to the end of the meal plan, you're kind of stuck and end up going back to what youre used to.

The other aspect is that these meal plans don't cater for a social life. What happens if you have someone's birthday dinner, are you going to just not go? Or are you going to enjoy something which is not on the plan and then technically, you have failed?

It's just not very flexible and conducive to a kind of horrible living.

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Exercise is a cornerstone of health. Sure, find a way to get active in a way that you enjoy, and reap the benefits of weight loss as a side effect.

But dont get stuck doing something you hate, just because you think it will fast-track your weight loss.

Graeme said: The key is enjoying exercise so that you are more likely to carry on with it. If youre not into strength training, try walking or climbing hills, or other activities at school you stopped doing.

A diet that replaces meals with shakes or soups may give you fast results.

But, aside from being - lets face it - depressing, there is no longevity to the diet unless you plan on drinking shakes for the rest of your life, Graeme said.

He said people end up going back to their old diet because they havent learnt anything about healthy eating, and get stuck yo-yoing.

They're not building sustainable habits that are going to last for the rest of their life, which is what they need, Graeme said.

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Most supplements are unnecessary, Graeme said, warning against things like fat burners and metabolism capsules.

There's very, very little science to back that up, he said.

The only supplements I would sort of recommend for people, especially living in the UK, for general health would be things like vitamin D and high quality fish oils and maybe a multivitamin.

Your best pal wants you to join a slimming club with her in the New Year, and youre keen, having seen the before and afters in the promos.

But, fundamentally, these diet groups do not educate their members on the simple premise of calorie deficits and portions - which is key for improving health and weight loss, Graeme said.

In Grames opinion: They're taking you away from the principles that you need to know so that you become reliant on them, so they keep getting money.

It's just like a conveyor belt of people who may have lost a bit of weight, don't understand how it happened because there was no education, and then for the same reason they gain the weight back. Then they go back to the slimming club and its never ending.

Diet clubs usually get people to step on the scales each week, with the whole room watching when the number doesn't go down.

Graeme explained the fault in this, saying: "Over seven days, weight can fluctuate quite a bit. It could be part of your menstrual cycle, you could be wearing heavier clothes, or you might not have been to the toilet yet that day. And so for a consultant to tell somebody that they've gained weight, it's quite flawed.

Graeme warned against labelling foods good or bad because it could lead to a distorted view of food.

He said: You might feel really bad for eating a chocolate bar because you think that its high in calories and has no nutrients.

But in the context of your overall week, it's 200 calories. It's not the end of the world. It's what you do over the long game that really counts.

Meanwhile, this way of thinking can mask that good healthy foods can also be very high in calories.

Take trendy peanut butter - 40g on a slice of toast amounts to 340 calories compared to your favourite naughty jam, which comes to just 195 calories.

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Right way to lose weight

WANT to know how to really lose weight and keep it off? Heres what works

TINY TWEAKS: The number-one rule of losing weight is to consume fewer calories than you burn, called a calorie deficit. Graeme says counting calories can be a wake-up call and doesnt need to be something you do long term.

A chicken salad seems healthy before you realise the 25ml of olive oil youre adding is 200-300 calories, he explains. You can reduce that to 5ml without starting a whole new diet, its just a small tweak.

GO SLOW: Youll have to trust Graeme on this one the slower you take things, the better and more long-lasting results youll likely get.

He suggests making gradual small changes, such as buying 50 per cent lower fat cheddar cheese or switching to diet fizzy drinks, rather than overhauling your diet overnight. That way, he says: Youre able to keep going with it. Its more sustainable.

FLEX IT: You ate a huge takeaway pizza on Saturday night, but it doesnt have to be a failure. Just get back on track and make better choices the next day, says Graeme. You could have a light lunch and go for a walk, he says. Graeme focuses on calories over a week, rather than day by day, to allow for flexibility.

THE F-WORD: Foods that are dense in fibre and protein will keep you full because they are harder to digest, says Graeme. Focus on fitting some form of fibre and protein be it green veg, lean meats or eggs into every meal.

LOVE TO MOVE: Hate the gym? Then dont go! The key is adhering to and sustaining exercise, long term, says Graeme. If you enjoy walking and you can hit 10,000 to 15,000 steps a day, then youre probably doing more to achieve your goal than if you went to the gym, which you hate, and hung about for 45 minutes and then left.

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The ten diet rules you should IGNORE if you want to lose weight... - The Sun

Climate change and green houses gases (GHG) have been hot topics for agriculture in the past few months. Farmers are being considered as a part of the solution, as companies who spew GHG want to pay farmers to put in place practices that will sequester carbon in the soil.

A few examples of sequestration practices include planting cover crops to remove more atmospheric carbon dioxide, as well as no till farming to reduce soil displacement into the atmosphere. These are fine ideas; benefits of our free market system as family farmers enjoy a new revenue stream and potentially better soil health.

However, one segment of agriculture is being targeted and used as a whipping post by some. Im talking about producers with cow herds, whether dairy or beef cows. Methane is now blamed as a major culprit in our global climate woes.

Lets look at some historical references about large mammals who have inhabited the U.S. and Canada since the land was settled. Its important to understand which animals cattle have replaced on the landscape. Right now, there are approximately 100 million cattle in Canada and the United States. Estimates of bison in this same region totaled about 70 million compared to todays count of 350 thousand. Elk numbers were 10 million 300 years ago, but todays number is one million. The same can be said for deer and antelope, their numbers have decreased in the same time period. My point is that the number of large mammals in this part of the world has not changed dramatically in the last 300 years.

Something that seldom enters the discussion is the length of time in which select GHGs remain in the atmosphere. Methane has a life expectancy of 10 years, compared to an estimate of 300 years for CO2. If we are looking to stabilize the amount of GHGs in the atmosphere, then we should consider stabilizing our current cattle herds, which would go a long way to slow the earths warming. The University of New Hampshire is conducting studies to determine if seaweed additives in cattle feed could reduce the amount of methane a cow emits. If this works on a wider scale, then we can start reducing the amount of GHGs contributed by agriculture with the same stabilized cattle herd.

Of course, there is a big reason why we need to have farm animals, including cows in the global food diet. We know we do not have enough tillable ground to raise the food this planet needs. The United Nations estimates we have 7.8 billion people on the planet and some experts point to vertical farming as a solution. Vertical farming translates to crops being grown indoors, under artificial conditions of light and temperature.

Even with vertical agriculture, I do not believe we can all eat a solely plant-based diet. According to a study published in May, 2020 by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 38 percent of the global land surface is used for agriculture. Of that, one third is cropland and two thirds is pasture land. This same study provided a historical reference of cropland to population. In 1961, there was 1.11 acres of cropland devoted to feeding one person in the world. By 2016, that number had dropped to .52 acres per person. In 1960, a farmer fed just 26 people. Today, the average U.S. farmer feeds 155 people.

Despite that increase we are falling behind feeding the worlds population. A plant-based diet alone cant feed the world. This is one reason why we need family farms that raise the milk and meat that are crucial to our diets and food security.

The writer is the vice president of the National Farmers Organization. He is a cow/calf rancher in Montana.

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Livestock and the American diet - sidneydailynews.com