Colin Campbell's 8 principles of nutrition that prolong life Bashny.Net

Biochemist Colin Campbell (Colin Campbell) specializiruetsya on the study of the impact of nutrition on health. He grew up on a dairy farm, where the staple diet was milk products. Campbell studied at Cornell University and then worked at MTI.

In the 1980s he headed a study called the "China project", where scientists from the three countries studied the influence of nutrition and lifestyle on human health, and the relationship of nutrition with chronic diseases.

The results of this work Campbell became one of the main promoters of the vegetarian diet: in his opinion plant products have a big advantage over products of animal origin, which are often detrimental to human health.

In 2005 he published his book The China Study, which is one of the best-selling American book market (sold circulation of more than 1 million copies). Eight years later, the book will be published in Russian. With the consent of the publishing house "Mann, Ivanov and Farber" Forbes publishes abridged 8 the main principles of nutrition formulated by Campbell.





Principle 1. The whole is greater than the sum of its parts

As soon as the food mixes with your saliva, your body starts the magical process of digestion. Each of the chemical substances contained in food begins in a special way to interact with other chemical substances in food and your body. It's infinitely complex process, and it is impossible to determine exactly how substances interact. We will never be able to find out exactly how is all this complex process.

In the course of evolution the human body has developed a very complex system of chemical reactions aimed at obtaining the maximum benefit from whole food in the form in which it exists in nature. You can proclaim favor of one particular nutrients, but this is too simplistic would be a mistake. The human body has learned to derive benefit from the chemicals in food composition, rejecting some and using others as he sees fit.

 

Principle 2. Vitamin supplements are not a panacea for health Because nutrition is an infinitely complex biochemical process that involves thousands of substances that in different ways affect your health, it is unlikely or almost impossible to separate the nutrients taken in as food supplements can substitute for whole foods. Taking supplements does not guarantee good health for a long time and can cause unexpected side effects. Moreover, those who rely on food supplements, the push for switching to the right diet.

It is not that nutrients are not important for the body. They are important, but only when doing it in the form of food, not food additives. The allocation of nutrients and attempt to obtain from them the same benefits as when eating whole foods indicates a lack of awareness of the processes that run in the body during eating.

Principle 3. Almost all of the nutrients are better represented in plant than in animal food

In plant foods contain more antioxidants, fiber and minerals than animal. In fact, animal products are almost completely devoid of some of these nutrients. At the same time animal food is much more cholesterol and fats. In addition, it has slightly more protein than plant, and vitamin B12 and vitamin D, although in the case of vitamin D this is due to the artificial added to the milk.

Of course, there are exceptions: some nuts and seeds rich with fats and proteins (e.g., peanuts, sesame seeds), while some animal products contain little fat, usually due to artificial degreasing (e.g., skim milk). But upon closer inspection, it turns out that nuts and seeds contain other fats and proteins, which are much healthier fats and proteins in animal food. Moreover, they combine in these plant foods with substances-antioxidants.

Principle 4. The genes themselves do not cause disease

I can confidently say that the appearance of each specific disease is due to genes. They determine everything that happens in our body: both good and bad. Without the appropriate genes there would be no cancer, no obesity, no diabetes, no cardiovascular disease. And without genes there would be no life.

However, this increased attention to genetic issues often overlooked simple but very important point: not all genes are constantly fully active. If there is no activation, or expression, of genes they from a biochemical point of view, remain dormant and have no effect on our health.

Observations show that the incidence of some diseases change over time so much that biologically it is impossible to attribute this to the influence of genes. Until recently, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and many other diseases of the rich were rare and our genetic code simply could not have changed so much over the past 25, 100 or even 500 years.

Therefore, although we can say that genes play a key role in all biological processes, we have very convincing evidence that much more important is the expression of genes, and it is determined by environmental factors, especially nutrition.

5. Using the power largely to control the adverse effects of harmful chemicals

The press regularly reports about chemicals that cause cancer. Acrylamide, artificial sweeteners, nitrosamines, nitrites, Alar, heterocyclic amines and aflatoxin in experimental studies revealed the close relationship between these substances and cancer.

It is widely believed that cancer is caused by toxic chemical substances that penetrate our body and have a harmful influence on him. For example, people often Express concern about possible health problems to justify their objections against the use of antibiotics and hormones in livestock.

One concern of chemical carcinogens — acrylamide, which is contained primarily in processed or fried foods such as potato chips. This assumes that if we could remove this chemical from potato chips, to consume them would be safe, despite the fact that they continue to remain unhealthy processed slices of potatoes drenched in fat and salt.

So many of us seem to need a scapegoat. We don't want to hear that our favorite food is harmful simply because of its nutritional composition.

Principle 6. Nutrition that prevents disease in its early stages can also halt its development

For the development of chronic disease requires a few years. For example, it is believed that the initiation of breast cancer can occur in adolescence and the disease may not manifest until the post-menopausal period! Therefore, it is likely that around us a lot of middle-aged women who have breast cancer initiation occurred in adolescence, but the disease will manifest only after menopause. A on the basis of this fatalistically consider that nothing can change. What should we do, given that many of us may already be initiated chronic disease, which decades later?

Luckily for us, proper nutrition can help to achieve better health at every stage of the disease. We reviewed the results of studies showing that a diet of whole plant foods helps cure cardiovascular diseases at a later stage, helps people suffering from obesity to lose weight, and patients with diabetes to stop taking drugs and return to that way of life they led before the illness.

Of course, some diseases, apparently, incurable. Autoimmune diseases are probably the worst, because if the body starts a war against himself, he may never stop.

Principle 7. Food that is useful in the case of one chronic disease, and help in the prevention of many other diseases

When I agreed to the publication of this book, I had a meeting with the editor of one major publishing house, and I shared with her my intention to devote some chapters, certain kinds of diseases to talk about the connection of nutrition with various ailments. In response, the editor asked me: "could you develop a specific diet for each disease that was not of the same recommendations in every Chapter?" In other words, could I recommend one particular food for patients with cardiovascular disease and another for patients with diabetes? Of course, the implication was that one diet for different diseases would have attracted little attention, would have been "not easily realizable in the market."

Maybe it would be a good move from a marketing point of view, but not from the point of view of science. So I'm afraid I don't have a separate recipe for each disease. I have only one recommendation nutrition: you can achieve optimal health and protect yourself from various diseases with a simple diet, [giving preference to plant products before the products of animal origin].

Principle 8. Good nutrition promotes health in different planes of our existence

Lately much is said about the integral, or holistic, approach to health. This concept people understand in different ways. Many include it in "alternative" medicine and drugs, so in their understanding of holistic medicine is synonymous with acupressure, acupuncture, herbs, meditation, vitamin supplements, chiropractic, yoga, aromatherapy, Feng Shui, massage and even sound therapy.

I support holistic medicine as a concept, but not as popular a phrase that is used to denote any non-traditional medical practices, which are often not proven. Food, for example, is of paramount importance for our health. The meal is perhaps the most intimate contact that we have with the environment; what we eat becomes part of our body.

However, it is important to both — physical activity, emotional and mental health and a comfortable environment. It is necessary to include these aspects in our concept of health, since they are all interrelated. And such an approach is truly holistic.

This growing relationship became evident during the experiments on animals. The rats were kept on low-protein diet, not only did not develop liver cancer, but was below the level of cholesterol in the blood, they were more energetic and willingly "practiced" on wheel two times longer than rats whose diet contained a large amount of protein. The evidence for enhanced activity was confirmed by a huge number of practical examples from life, with whom I have encountered for many years: people that eat right, more energetic.

The synergy of nutrition and physical activity is very important, and there is evidence that these two spheres are interrelated. The combination of proper nutrition and regular exercise helps a person to achieve a better state of health than the impact of the two factors individually.

We also know that physical activity affects emotional and mental state of a person. Much is said about the influence of physical activity on various chemicals in our body, which in turn, determines our mood and concentration. And improving emotional well-being and intellectual abilities, pushing us to maintain an optimal diet. published

 

P. S. And remember, only by changing their consumption — together we change the world! © Join us at Facebook , Vkontakte, Odnoklassniki

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