tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post2173282624369286620..comments2024-03-27T23:47:41.656-07:00Comments on Whole Health Source: The Tokelau Island Migrant Study: Dental HealthStephan Guyenethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09218114625524777250noreply@blogger.comBlogger35125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-51957500089825419642009-03-20T19:20:00.000-07:002009-03-20T19:20:00.000-07:00Brock,I took a look at that paper, it makes soakin...Brock,<BR/><BR/>I took a look at that paper, it makes soaking look pretty dismal for breaking down phytic acid. I did find another paper that used complementary flours to break down phytic acid. The gluten grains have a lot of phytase, as does buckwheat. So mixing buckwheat flour with other flours is one option. But if you sourdough ferment, you'll get phytase activity in any flour.Stephan Guyenethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09218114625524777250noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-65547859778948229962009-03-18T19:52:00.000-07:002009-03-18T19:52:00.000-07:00Stephan, have you seen anything on mixing brown ri...Stephan, have you seen anything on mixing brown rice with a high-phytase grain during soaking and/or fermentation? I found <A HREF="http://cat.inist.fr/?aModele=afficheN&cpsidt=14409241" REL="nofollow">this paper</A> but do not have access to it - do you?Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17698562397742719005noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-80784774939256621962009-03-18T19:41:00.000-07:002009-03-18T19:41:00.000-07:00Thresshold,In my opinion, it's just a coincidence ...Thresshold,<BR/><BR/>In my opinion, it's just a coincidence that he didn't study any rice eating cultures. He didn't travel to Asia except perhaps to India to look for healthy vegans (he didn't find any).<BR/><BR/>I believe that rice can be healthy and in fact, in my opinion it's among the healthiest grains. Japan is arguably the healthiest affluent nation and white rice is a staple. They can get away with the low nutrient content of polished rice because their diet is otherwise rich in vitamins and minerals from eggs, seafood, meat and a modest quantity of vegetables. <BR/><BR/>Traditional cultures that eat brown rice often grind and ferment it, because that's the best way to break down the phytic acid and make the minerals absorbable. Unsoaked, unfermented cooked brown rice is probably worse than white rice as far as minerals are concerned. It's richer in vitamins of course, but it's probably not a great staple food unless fermented. Simply soaking brown rice doesn't break down enough of the phytic acid.Stephan Guyenethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09218114625524777250noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-62296179251073180032009-03-13T14:57:00.000-07:002009-03-13T14:57:00.000-07:00Stephan, I think it's great that you search out su...Stephan, I think it's great that you search out supportive evidence for Price's work. I've been reading NAPD lately and am disturbed by the lack of any healthy non-industrialized peoples that had a rice-based diet. Or even used rice. The question arises, was that because he couldn't find any that were healthy? Or why?<BR/><BR/>He seems to have left a lot of info out of this book. I haven't gotten far enough to find out if the detailed info on diets is included elsewhere. I was very shocked that a boy made a fabulous recovery on nothing but whole milk and freshly-ground wheat (unfermented apparently), with HV butter oil. This really has me rethinking food and its relation to health.<BR/><BR/>I am a cavity-every-six-months person, who arrested decay for 3 years by going on a Protein Power-like diet. No limit on non-starchy veggies, lots of meat-- turkey, beef --lots of nuts, olive oil, egg a day. No grains. Very little fruit, no sugar. Plenty of supplemented vitamin A and D, E, C, Bs, some dolomite.<BR/><BR/>I am a celiac. I can produce a disease state that causes tooth decay and other destruction literally with one wrong snack. I can become seriously B12 deficient in a matter of minutes. I'm on a pro-nutrient, WAPF-friendly diet now, but that cannot protect against occurrences of "one wrong snack." The only "cure" for the tooth and other system damage is absolute abstinence, which unless the "supply ship doesn't come in" is impossible for me now.Thressholdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11623121175831895495noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-89040737148841193992009-01-15T19:32:00.000-08:002009-01-15T19:32:00.000-08:00I was just about to jump in and point out what Ste...I was just about to jump in and point out what Stephan said in his last paragraph. While I certainly agree that foods using fresh, coarse ground whole wheat berries are going to be better white flour versions, grain eating cultures still suffer problems that non-grain eating cultures simply don't have to worry about. Even the Swiss that Price studied, while healthier than their lowland brethren, were the least healthy of the groups he studied.<BR/><BR/>And importantly, we only know that because of the very precise measurements taken by Price. Most other ethnologists I've read are not nearly as rigorous.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17698562397742719005noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-81182765784702436282009-01-15T19:24:00.000-08:002009-01-15T19:24:00.000-08:00Matt, Scott and Tavinder,The thing you mentioned a...Matt, Scott and Tavinder,<BR/><BR/>The thing you mentioned about Sikhs has peaked my interest. Are you absolutely sure they didn't ferment it? Fermentation is a food preparation method that is often overlooked. Diet records of African cultures often don't even mention the fact that grains are almost always fermented. Also, how much wheat did they eat? Was it a dominant part of their caloric intake year-round as it is in Europe and the US? And what did he mean by "robust"? Did he measure anything quantitative like tooth decay?<BR/><BR/>I do acknowledge that Price had success in curing tooth decay using freshly-ground wheat. But he also fed these children very large amounts of fat-soluble vitamins at the same time. If wheat does its damage by impairing fat-soluble vitamin status (a theory I've touched on in the past), then that would explain why high levels of fat-soluble vitamins can override it. The same could be true of the sikhs, who use a lot of pastured butter traditionally. But then again, Price didn't follow them 10 years down the road. Maybe they ended up developing autoimmune thyroiditis, gluten ataxia or one of the other zillion things that result from gluten sensitivity.<BR/><BR/>Grains have never really been an ideal food as a staple. If you look in the archaeological record, cultures that adopted grains immediately saw a decrease in stature, decrease in skeletal and dental robustness, an increase in tooth decay, anemia etc. They may have been overconsuming it or something, but those are symptoms you typically don't see in non grain-eating cultures, no matter what their diets were. I think the only way to make grains healthy as a staple is to choose the right one(s) (non-gluten), and prepare them to maximize digestibility (by soaking, sprouting, grinding and particularly fermentating).Stephan Guyenethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09218114625524777250noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-27162304453798080272009-01-14T08:07:00.000-08:002009-01-14T08:07:00.000-08:00Lisa,Those diets do heal. They are fantastic diet...Lisa,<BR/><BR/>Those diets do heal. They are fantastic diets - some of the best out there for an ailing world. But I think it's important to be open to all kinds of dietary strategies. I didn't stay all-meat or all-rice or all-whatever for long, but I was able to heal on those and return to more nutritious diets with better results.<BR/><BR/>Sam,<BR/><BR/>Unfortunately many people suffer from delusions about certain foods being unhealthy because their bodies cannot handle them properly. There is absolutely nothing wrong with gluten, just as there is nothing wrong with lactose, or casein, or any natural component of any natural food that humans have subsisted on for centuries. Robert McCarrison even noted that his animal subjects had perfect health and resistance to virulent diseases with lots of fresh, stone-ground glutinous wheat in their diet - including dogs, monkeys, and pigeons. <BR/><BR/>The problem is impaired adenosine metabolism. Adenosine is broken down by the adenosine deaminase enzyme, an enzyme that is bound to a molecule called DPP-IV, the enzyme that breaks down casein and gluten. DPP-IV also has immunomodulatory action and can lead to hyperallergenicity and autoimmunity. Of course, undigested casein and gluten have very strong psychoactive properties as well, disrupt neurotransmitter balance, cause addiction, etc.<BR/><BR/>So yes, under certain circumstances, gluten-containing foods may be the most pathological substances in a person's diet. Immediate removal is mandatory and life-changing. <BR/><BR/>They are perfectly suitable for a healthy person though, if freshly-prepared and not ground into an overly fine powder.Matt Stonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00823163098708883587noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-21434484449419008882009-01-12T02:35:00.000-08:002009-01-12T02:35:00.000-08:00So if high quality WAPF and Kwaz/Groves diets don'...So if high quality WAPF and Kwaz/Groves diets don't heal, what is a person with a system broken by years of Western eating habits to do? I really wouldn't want to go all animal product for an extended length of time.Lisahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13635497714540895397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-22164729072155098172009-01-11T16:04:00.000-08:002009-01-11T16:04:00.000-08:00Matt Stone, the fine powders generated by today's ...Matt Stone, the fine powders generated by today's high speed rolling mills are dangerous because they provide much larger reactive surface areas for the mass ingested.<BR/><BR/>This naturally leads to a much steeper insulin spike and other biological activity compared to the same mass more coarsely ground.<BR/><BR/>As for there being nothing inherently wrong with eating wheat and you being able to prove that "...to the level of irrefutability" - you have to be kidding. You've heard of gluten, I take it?Samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02959738746592888535noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-4134519384718370742009-01-11T15:40:00.000-08:002009-01-11T15:40:00.000-08:00There is definitely something too the freshness of...There is definitely something too the freshness of ground grain. Also, today's grinders turn wheat into a fine powder. Fine powders tend to act like drugs more than food, whether the fiber is there or not.<BR/><BR/>I think wheat is a great case in point of the rules changing. Grain has been a staple of numerous cultures, but the digestive impairment that so many of us have dealt with make grains a much less tolerable form of food. For some, any kind of fiber can now be an irritant. Of course there is nothing inherently wrong with wheat or any other natural human staple over the last several thousands of years - a point I could argue to the level of irrefutability. But Autistic kids for example, or anyone with similar root disorders, do not produce the enzyme necessary to split proteins like gluten and casein from dairy. Then these foods become quite pathological. But it's not the food's fault, but the person who is eating it.<BR/><BR/>I guess my point is simply that eating a bunch of healthy foods from a list, or trying to follow some native diet that provided perfect health to our ancestors - although a massive leap in the right direction, isn't a panacea or cure all.<BR/><BR/>What I find interesting is that deer in Grand Canyon National Park began eating junk food from the tourist visitors, became aggressive, started losing hair and falling ill, and had to be put down because they could no longer return to their diet of grass. They couldn't digest it - the most natural and nutritious, and perfectly suitable food for a deer.<BR/><BR/>I think the same pertains to humans and many of the foods we ingest that would otherwise be quite suitable, particularly wheat and milk (something dentist Melvin Page excluded from the diet to cure tooth decay).Matt Stonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00823163098708883587noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-11663814392259283162009-01-10T05:09:00.000-08:002009-01-10T05:09:00.000-08:00TavinderThere is an interesting paper done many ye...Tavinder<BR/><BR/>There is an interesting paper done many years ago comparing the health of railway workers in northern and southern India and finding high heart disease in the South where vegetable oil consumption was higher, although there could be confounding factors like the use of curcumin.<BR/><BR/>There is another Indian paper showing an increase linear relationship between omega 6 consumption and diabetes, as people moved from a rural to urban diet.<BR/><BR/>If you have refers for any Indian papers on the subject I would be really interested.Robert Andrew Brownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05181027811602620374noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-81534041990123513052009-01-09T23:47:00.000-08:002009-01-09T23:47:00.000-08:00Matt,Sikhs living in the Punjab region of Northern...Matt,<BR/><BR/>Sikhs living in the Punjab region of Northern India being mostly an agricultural society traditionally use a lot of butter and Ghee (clarified butter) in their diet. I think this explains their relative robustness compared to other cultures in the subcontinent. <BR/>However, for the past 20 years or so, due to rapid urbanisation, the Punjabis are eating a far more westernized diet, especially the use of vegetable oils in the cooking. This change alone has caused the incidence of cardiovascular diseases and diabetes to skyrocket there.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16461935245856842218noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-28488651251941273902009-01-09T16:55:00.000-08:002009-01-09T16:55:00.000-08:00Matt, regarding your comments on wheat: I'm readin...Matt, regarding your comments on wheat: <BR/><BR/>I'm reading Weston Price right now and he used freshly ground whole wheat for the bread he fed children in one of his successful intervention studies on dental caries. He did not say he soaked it or sprouted it. The only point he made was that it needed to be freshly ground to avoid having the fats in the germ oxidize and lose nutrients. <BR/><BR/>So I think that wheat (whole, unrefined) can be used successfully by healthy populations, even if they don't soak or ferment it.<BR/><BR/>But...if some of those kids had been celiacs, they would not have done so well. And some studies (that I can't quote) find some level of gluten and wheat lectin intolerance in many populations. So I think that while wheat may not be causing huge problems for some cultures, given their over all food choices, they may do better with a different grain choice (if they could choose).<BR/><BR/>Now vegetable oil...I don't think any cultures thrive on that.<BR/><BR/>Scott WScott Whttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10687098328064801055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-83353764301805427702009-01-09T14:16:00.000-08:002009-01-09T14:16:00.000-08:00I agree...Fiber menace was a great book. I cut out...I agree...Fiber menace was a great book. I cut out the fiber along time ago and it makes a huge difference. I don't eat wheat or very many grains., and i cut down on my veggie and nut consumption, and eat pretty much just eggs, raw cream, meat, cheese, and seafood....it feels good. I do try to get the best quality products i can, but if i can't or am eating out with friends i don't mind eating some conventional stuff...i just avoid the wheat, grains, and fiber and i feel great. I haven't had a cavity or teeth issues since i have been eating like this. <BR/><BR/>I think alot of our guts got damaged growing up eating wheat, soy oil, corn oil, sugar, and to many grains the FDA food pyramid recommended. If we had been on traditional diets, i think alot of us could digest vegetable, nuts, seeds, and some grains alot better. I just feel alot better sticking to fat and protein for now though.Half Navajohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06726356217979989075noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-79299533382858807322009-01-09T14:04:00.000-08:002009-01-09T14:04:00.000-08:00Thanks MattMy interest is in what is happening to ...Thanks Matt<BR/><BR/>My interest is in what is happening to the additional calories and how that may impact on oxidation, antioxidant need etc.<BR/><BR/>Teeth need minerals. Speculation - Maybe meat is a better source of minerals than previous elements of your diet.Robert Andrew Brownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05181027811602620374noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-68765977239117405392009-01-09T13:31:00.000-08:002009-01-09T13:31:00.000-08:00I suspect too that the Maori dentition was precise...I suspect too that the Maori dentition was precisely as Price described. Of course he mentions hearing rumors of their fantastic teeth and physical health before he even set out to see for himself. <BR/><BR/>On the topic of wheat, Robert McCarrison noted that of all the regions he studied in the Himalayan region, the Sikhs were the most physically robust. He made similar discoveries there as Price did in his travels elsewhere. The Sikhs ate fresh-ground, whole-wheat chappatis with every meal. They did not sprout or ferment their grains and cooked it for only a few minutes.<BR/><BR/>I did not get fat eating 4,000 calories a day. Calories have little to do with weight gain. In fact, 4,000 is an underestimate. I got much leaner eating 300 grams of fat per day from the diet I mentioned than I ever got eating a 'regular diet' or even a low-calorie, predominantly raw vegan diet. <BR/><BR/>Working as a wilderness ranger and then moving to Hawaii for the winter really diminishes the chances that I was vitamin D deficient from lack of sunlight.<BR/><BR/>Stan, your commentary about a diet being too high in carbs and fat simultaneously has some merit. Since then I dropped milk and cut my carbs back to approximate Kwasniewski proportions (although I didn't study up on Kwaz until very recently).<BR/><BR/>Still, the tooth pain remained and actually seemed to worsen a little (even with carbs at 50grams per day and no sugar in my diet in any form).<BR/><BR/>My teeth have been much better since I went on an all-meat, zero carb diet. It was probably the least nutritious diet I've eaten, from a micronutrient standpoint, in my entire life. I ate mostly supermarket rare feedlot beef and commercial eggs. <BR/><BR/>All I am proposing, because I've had such contradictory experiences to what this post indicates, is that teeth are overrun with bacteria because of a suppressed immune system. What suppresses the immune system? Cortisol (which also triggers insulin resistance and hypothyroidism -- also linked to impaired immunity). <BR/><BR/>Why do people secrete too much cortisol? Because their bodies are in a hyperimmune state caused by elevated triglycerides (from excess fructose consumption), too many omega 6's, malabsorption from poor digestion (fructose, lactose, and maldigested starches in particular), which in turn fuel bacterial overgrowth in the digestive tract, increase inflammatory cytokine production and cortisol even more, and the vicious cycle continues. <BR/><BR/>Tooth decay is caused by bacteria taking over. Bacteria take over the digestive tract first and are much harder to combat (can't brush the small intestine too well). Our immune system function and disease resistance all stems from the innerworkings of the digestive tract.<BR/><BR/>Eating a nutritious diet full of fat soluble vitamins and minerals is the best way to prevent this process from beginning. There is no question that native diets, regardless of their composition, are the healthiest human diets.<BR/><BR/>But is a mixed diet like this, regardless of the superiority of its nutritional content, or organic-ness, appropriate for someone with impaired digestion, damaged intestinal villi, malabsorption, and a thrashed brush border? Perhaps not. Perhaps nutrients and food quality are secondary to eating in a way that better treats these impairments. Perhaps this is why practices such as removing a food group from the diet, food-combining, cleansing and fasting, and eating as few calories as possible are more closely linked to health, health recovery/healing, and longevity. Perhaps this is why Furhman has vastly superior health to Cowan (he's got a hyperinsulinemia/cortisolemia potbelly), why many near-vegans look and feel better than the people that attend the WAPF annual conference, and why I feel a heck of a lot better focusing on eating a low-fiber, no-sugar, easy-to-digest diet than trying to gobble up as many vitamin and mineral-rich foods as I can get my hands on. <BR/><BR/>All I'm saying is that it's a possibility, and it's best not to get blindsided in the typical nutritionist mode of focusing on nutrient-density and whether or not our ancestors ate x food. <BR/><BR/>"I study why healthy foods kill people."<BR/>-Konstantin Monastyrsky; author, Fiber MenaceMatt Stonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00823163098708883587noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-88312739664796909852009-01-09T10:05:00.000-08:002009-01-09T10:05:00.000-08:00I think Weston Price’s observations about Maori te...I think Weston Price’s observations about Maori teeth are the more reliable. I recall the archaeological evidence of bad teeth was due to the high number of holes in the bone near the teeth indicating abscessing and <B>Jad</B> may well be onto something with the violence theory. A blow to the mouth can damage the roots of teeth – something I can personally attest to. Violence was far more prevalent in HG societies then it is today with something like 40% of men eventually being killed fighting. Maori society was probably even worse with their predilection for cannibalism.<BR/><BR/>It is possible that scientists looked for evidence of bad teeth in Maori to sell their theory that NZ was low in natural fluoride in order to convince everyone that fluoridating the water supply was a good idea. Tooth health did improve after that however they may have treated a symptom rather than the cause.AngloAmerikanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02002362092073890146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-29840785478345655352009-01-09T07:23:00.000-08:002009-01-09T07:23:00.000-08:00From Weston Price, "Nutrition and Physical Degener...From Weston Price, "Nutrition and Physical Degeneration," (18th edition, pages 452-453):<BR/><BR/>"Among the skulls of the Maoris of New Zealand, of individuals who lived before the coming of the white man, only one tooth per thousand teeth had been attacked by decay. This is in striking contrast with the condition of the teeth of this same people today since it has become largely modernized by contact with the white population. In my studies of modernized Maori groups, I found from 300 to 600 per thousand teeth attacked by dental caries...The whites of New Zealand, according to their own dentists have the poorest teeth in the world today." Isabellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06308468877762256928noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-23945775492364637702009-01-08T22:18:00.000-08:002009-01-08T22:18:00.000-08:00Scott W,I've noticed that too, but I haven't looke...Scott W,<BR/><BR/>I've noticed that too, but I haven't looked into it. I'll keep my eyes peeled.<BR/><BR/>AA,<BR/><BR/>Low quality meat in my book is CAFO chicken and turkey that's rich in omega-6. Lots of fatty parts and not much protein. Normally that wouldn't be a problem, but when a CAFO chicken's body fat has the same composition as industrial vegetable oil... That being said, I mentioned the canned meats for completeness; I'm not suggesting they had anything to do with it.<BR/><BR/>About the Maori, I don't know how to explain that. Price found the traditionally living Maori in excellent health, and has pictures to prove their good dental health. I'm not going to dispute the archaeological findings you mentioned, there are always exceptions to a rule. Maybe it was the result of some particular combination of factors in that time period. Maybe they had a taboo on organs or something, HG society tends to be big on taboos. I feel comfortable saying that the large majority of prehistoric HG groups had excellent dental health. <BR/><BR/>Robert,<BR/><BR/>Giving your copy of NPD to a dentist is a worthy cause!Stephan Guyenethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09218114625524777250noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-28120069568978053562009-01-08T16:51:00.000-08:002009-01-08T16:51:00.000-08:00Price found the Maori in excellent health. I was a...Price found the Maori in excellent health. I was a bit surprised to hear the description related by AA. But Price also related that the Maori made heavy use of fish and shellfish.<BR/><BR/>I wouldn't be surprised if the poor dental health was from a period when the Maori were new to NZ or otherwise in a period of flux before they found local sources of proper nutrition.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17698562397742719005noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-15056861260379577272009-01-08T15:31:00.000-08:002009-01-08T15:31:00.000-08:00What does Weston Price have to say on the Maori.I ...What does Weston Price have to say on the Maori.<BR/><BR/>I gave my copy away to a dentist - I must get another.Robert Andrew Brownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05181027811602620374noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-87634298012031170642009-01-08T15:15:00.000-08:002009-01-08T15:15:00.000-08:00could it be the Maori were losing their teeth and ...could it be the Maori were losing their teeth and damaging their bones through other means? They were a race of warriors and engaged in many battles with other chiefdoms, and would also practice figthing regularly. Perhaps it was wear and tear from punches and fighting that did it?<BR/>Also I do know NZ soil is very low in selenium (as is Australia's from where I am from) perhaps that had something to do with it?Jadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00583901855636442628noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-53904204393518585812009-01-08T13:25:00.000-08:002009-01-08T13:25:00.000-08:00MattInteresting.On 4000 cals a day were you puttin...Matt<BR/><BR/>Interesting.<BR/><BR/>On 4000 cals a day were you putting on weight or was it used for energy?<BR/><BR/>Any vegetable oils in the diet?<BR/><BR/>Did conditions relate to inflammation. Any gum issues?<BR/><BR/>What was different with the December no plant material diet that was beneficial.<BR/><BR/>Just interested if you feel you can answer.<BR/><BR/>ThanksRobert Andrew Brownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05181027811602620374noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-47786802778895285252009-01-08T11:12:00.000-08:002009-01-08T11:12:00.000-08:00They also began eating low-quality canned meats th...<I>They also began eating low-quality canned meats that partially replaced fish in their diet.</I><BR/><BR/>This fact is often mentioned when discussing the modern Polynesian diet yet it seems at odds with the theories presented here. What is low quality meat? In the West low quality meat is regarded as meat that contains less lean meat and a lot of fat, sinew and organ material yet we here might regard that as better quality than very lean meat. Is it possible that the canned meats have had very little adverse impact on their health compared to flour and sugar?<BR/><BR/>Also it stuck in my mind when I was young and told that preindustrial Maori of New Zealand had dental problems. I found this after a quick search:<BR/><BR/><BR/><I>Evidence from human skeletal remains shows that life was short and hard, despite the strong build of the people and the absence of infectious diseases. As in other preindustrial societies, the average age at death was around 30, with an estimated life expectancy of 45-50. Arthritis and spinal degeneration were common after age 25 and the small number who actually got beyond 40 to claim their allotted span had usually lost their teeth. From the small samples examined, tooth decay seems to have been more common in the early period when meat from seals and large birds was readily available. In the later period, tooth decay seems to have been replaced by tooth wear as vegetable fibre, primarily fern root, replaced meat in the diet (Houghton, 1980, 1996; Davidson, 1984).</I> <A HREF="http://www.mfe.govt.nz/publications/ser/ser1997/html/chapter2.3.html" REL="nofollow">Link</A><BR/><BR/><BR/>I wonder if this a relic of colonialist propaganda or if there is some truth to it. One theory was that NZ was missing some trace elements in the soil that were required for healthy teeth.AngloAmerikanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02002362092073890146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1629175743855013102.post-12734492207419981082009-01-08T11:07:00.000-08:002009-01-08T11:07:00.000-08:00You say "it doesn't seem like Price recog...You say "it doesn't seem like Price recognized the critical contribution of sunlight to D status."<BR/><BR/>But it was as late as 1923 when Goldblatt and Soames discovered that when 7-dehydrocholesterol < precursor of vitamin D in the skin> was irradiated with sunlight or ultraviolet light, a substance equivalent to the fat-soluble vitamin was produced. <BR/><BR/>It took much longer for information to spread when Price was working.TedHutchinsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13140097526458431747noreply@blogger.com