The Protein Power Lifeplan

Rating:
Summary: Heresy
Review: I read this book in two days- l just could not put it down.
It all just seemed to make so much sense. But the proof is in the pudding-l am interested to see if a low carbohydrate diet really can lower my triglyceride and raise my HDL level.
I did have a couple of problems with it though. For one, they claim Vitamin E has been shown to greatly reduce the risk of heart attacks. Recent studies suggest this is not true. Another is using the paleolithic diet as a the model for ours. Im not sure that is really going back in time far enough. Great apes are probably quite similar to our more ancient ancestors and they are primarily vegetarians.
And lastly they stated the largely vegetarian Chinese have heart attacks at a rate nearly the same as ours but they neglected to mention that the Chinese smoke cigarettes at a higher rate than we.
But all in all it was one of the most interesting books lve read recently.

Rating:
Summary: I wish I could give a good review
Review: A BLOODY WASTE OF DOSH!
YOU CAN FIGURE IT OUT YOURSELF.........
SJW.

Rating:
Summary: Despite bad advice on the sun, a good plan.
Review: Another strong argument from the Eades pair on the insulin-lowering (and consequent benefits to the immune and other systems) effects of a low-carb diet rich in antioxidents and omega 6 fats.... or, "natural" eating. If you follow this plan to the letter, you will lose weight (as you will with any calorie reduction combined with increased exercise) and enjoy great health benefits.

The Paleolithic argument... well, they can get a little wacky romanticizing it. Exercises like "Defending the Camp?" "Bringing Home the Buffalo?" Am I the only one who found this hilarious? And then they warn against working out to the point of exhaustion. Yes, I'm sure our ancestors were careful to take it easy in their daily struggle to survive. Sometimes you can fall a little too in love with your own great idea (we are still Paleolithic humans) and get a little binary on it (everything paleolithic: good. agricultural: bad).

My biggest argument with the book is the authors' advocating lots of sun exposure (without burning, though)... I think they should make some sort of acknowledgement to the modern problem of depleted ozone layer and increased UVB/UVA radiation. I agree that at one time the sun provided merely benefits, but we've changed that, haven't we? Just as we haven't evolved to benefit from the Twinkie, we haven't evolved to reap only good things from today's sun. Just ask seasoned construction workers, who only in the past decade have begun burning. Scary. So, Drs. Eades: please be careful what you tell people regarding the sun. It ain't what it used to be.

Rating:
Summary: A well-grounded arguement for low-carb, plus much more.
Review: Dr. Michael Eades and Mary Dan Eades, M.D.'s have written a follow-up to their popular "Protein Power" published in 1995. The Eades are a husband-and-wife team that has a joint practice where they dish out the same advice as in their books - that of a restricted carbohydrate diet. But unlike the much more popular Dr. Atkins Diet, the Eades concentrate much more on gaining the best nutritional bang for your buck. Like their first book it is well organized with helpful summaries of each chapter, but it also delves into different subjects like exercise, meditation and even sunbathing.

"Protein Power Lifeplan" is not simply a diet book, but more of a nutritional and health philosophy. The Eades underline their main low-carbohydrate philosophy throughout the book, which, for the uneducated goes something like this: it is not fat that makes us fat, gives us diseases like diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, etc. Rather it is sugar. Starches, since they are basically the same thing as sugar (just chained together and easily broken into their component sugars in the digestive process), are counted as well. The Eades describe how the body produces the hormone insulin when carbs are ingested. The more carbs we have in our diet, the more insulin is produced. Insulin is used by the body to remove sugar from the bloodstream, where it can cause harm. Unfortunately, the insulin that removes it can also cause harm in excessive amounts. In addition, when exposed to these large amounts of insulin, the body slowly becomes more and more resistant to the hormone and the body has to produce more of it to have the same effect, so it is a vicious cycle. The end of this cycle results when the body is so resistant that it simply can't produce enough and adult onset diabetes occurs.

The other main theme sounded throughout the book is the whole idea that humans are not made for consuming the amount of carbs that we do today. The Eades make a good argument, which has been made by others, that agriculture is only a ten-thousand-year-old innovation, and that before this our ancestors were all hunter-gatherers, consuming primarily animals with perhaps a few wild vegetables nuts, seeds, and berries thrown in. Due to the slow pace of evolution and natural selection, they argue, our bodies have not caught up to the last ten thousand years of vastly increased carbohydrates in our diets from the farming of grains. They point out that anthropological finds bear out that those who lived before the advent of agriculture display strong bones, tall statures, perfect teeth and jaws, and no evidence of the diseases of modern man. On the contrary, even the inhabitants of ancient Egypt five thousand or so years ago, who lived on a mainly vegetarian, grain-based diet, show (or their mummies do, I should say), evidence of diabetes, heart disease, gum disease, crumbling bones, and many other maladies.

As far as the diet itself, the Eades have honed it somewhat. They now suggest three different approaches to the diet, so called "hedonist," "dilettante," and "purist." The main differences are in how strict the diets are to the Paleolithic Ideal, so to speak. So purists would not eat any dairy products or grains, and only range-reared meat or wild game, since the alternatives would not have been available to their ancient ancestors. The diet starts out at an "intervention stage" which allots seven to ten grams of carbs per meal. Once the person is no longer experiencing health problems, or has gotten close to their goal weight/body fat percentage, they would go on the transition plan, which increases carbs by about 50%. Finally, after you've gotten to exactly the place you want body-wise and health-wise and don't need added improvement, you go onto the "maintenance" level, which doubles, give or take, the transition level of carbs.

Despite certain vocal dissenters like Dr. Dean Ornish, the AMA, and ADA, there are an increasing number of medical doctors and nutritionists who are starting to appreciate the validitiy of the low-carb philosophy. I was shocked to learn that the whole idea behind fat causing all these health problems in the first place is just that - an IDEA. It is a hypothesis that the whole medical industry latched onto 25 or 30 years ago, because it made some logical sense at the time, and has only recently started to let go on the edges despite there being absolutely no proof that low fat diets are conducive to health, and many that indicate the exact opposite! There are many cliché criticisms that get foisted on low-carb diets and the Eades tackle many of them, including the "vampire myths" ( myths that won't die) that these diets cause kidney problems in otherwise healthy individuals, or that the Chinese (who eat a primarily rice-based diet) do not suffer from much heart disease, etc. Yet these myths are constantly invoked by those who have convinced themselves that their philosophy is right and this one is wrong. Unfortunately, these individuals never research whether studies bear their claims out, nor are most even willing to read the full argument of the "other side". I have an idea as to why this may be the case. One of the first adherents of low-carb diets in recent times has been Dr. Robert Atkins, and his attitude is so combative (unlike the Eades who are so open-minded as to even admit to being wrong about some things they said in their previous book), that it encourages those who oppose him to be equally as combative and close-minded. Do yourself a favor and read something with a refreshingly even-handed tone. Whether you agree with their overall philosophies or not, there is a lot of helpful information on vitamins and minerals and other topics which do not require you to change your diet, despite my own opinion that it would be in your best interest to do so.

Rating:
Summary: Eat better, don't feel hungry and still lose weight!!
Review: I hadn't tried a diet in many years and have steadily put on pounds. Most diets don't work as we all know. You may lose a few pounds at first, but then you can't seem to lose any more. They mess up your metabolism and cause your body to go into starvation mode. Which means it hangs onto the fat as if your life depended on it. After seeing the great results many I know have had with the protein diet craze I decided to try it myself. Even though I have only lost a few pounds so far I know this should work. The biggest flaw with most diets is that you have to limit your calorie intake so much you are hungry all the time. Also, your body is used to taking in so many more calories that it goes into starvation mode. Then it takes forever to lose the weight. I know that if I stick with it (and I think I will)this should work because you don't have to feel hungry on it. I am a little leary of Atkins plan though. A friend told me about his plan of starting at only 20 carbs a day before I had read this book. Me and my husband both felt sick within the first couple days. It is extreme. I like the Eades approach of 7-10 effective carbs per meal. I think it is a much healthier way to go. We switched to this method and now we feel fine after having done it for a week. As for protein diets being unhealthy, I think it is completely in how you do it. I have heard people say you can eat all this bacon, hamburger (without the bun, of course) and so on. I think that is asking for trouble if that is all you eat on this diet. We all know there are healthier choices of protein: skinless chicken breast, turkey, lean pork, and of course fish and other seafood. That doesn't mean you can't indulge occassionally. Since we have been on this diet we have actually been eating more vegetables than ever, no ice cream, and no fast food. How could that be unhealthy? If you read it you will discover which vegetables you can have more of without going in excess of the carb allotment. Spinach, leaf lettuce, cucumbers, broccoli, and cauliflower are some of the best ones. You can also have more mushrooms (which is great for me.) As far as berries go there are many that are low in carbs that you can have some of when you have a sweet tooth. You get to subtract the grams of fiber from the total carbs per serving so you can have more of those that are lower in carbs.
I have also seen the new food pyramid, which someone else mentioned. While it doesn't completely agree with this plan it does show some of the high carb foods that should be eaten very sparingly: white rices, pasta, potatoes, white bread, and sweets. That part is in complete agreement with this plan. Although I know that many are criticizing these protein diets as unhealthy. I felt that way too before I started on it. Being very overweight is unhealthy and it perpetuates itself. You are tired so you don't do as much as you could, which leads to gaining more weight. Or, you are depressed because you are overweight so you figure, why not eat what I want anyway? If you follow this plan I feel certain you can lose weight, lower your blood pressure, and have more energy. If that is a problem, which it is for many that are overweight. Atkins diet I'm sure you could also lose weight on and maybe faster at first since it is so strict. I don't think I could have stuck with that. This way I feel that I will be more likely to stick with, lose weight, and be healthier. Since you can eat more vegetables on it. The middle part of the plan and the maintenace even allow for more carbs, so when you lose your weight you will be rewarded in being able to allow even more fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Looking forward to it!!

Rating:
Summary: Chose to be healthy! Kay
Review: I have tried a few to many ways of improving my health and reducing my weight and the Protein Power Diet by Dr's. Michael R., and Mary Dan Eades has proven itself to me and my family and friends. Anyone that knows me, knows I research everything that has to do with one's health, and this Protein Power Diet Book educates a person on just how the body functions with the right and wrong foods as fuel to make the body run like a well oiled machine or a rusty one. My husband and I tried it for 40 days. I lose 14 lbs. and he lost 11 lbs. His cholestrol was at 480. At the next lab test 45 days later it was at 295. My cholestrol was at a good level but needed to increase HDL. In 45 days it went from 43 to 65. My husband's HDL was 28, now 49. If you can stick with this diet for 2 week's your sweet tooth will decrease. The foods do satisfy you and is plentiful. And the ability to get out of bed and look forward to a day of work or fun does not feel like a horrible chore anymore. Nerves seem to be so calm now and attitudes are so much more managable. The body functions like that well oiled machine again. Anyone who struggles with dieting and health problems needs the help of this LifePlan, to make you realize you do have a life that can be lived and enjoyed. Yes, I did go off the diet for 6 months and my weight went up and my health went down. We returned to the diet, and we are starting to enjoy returning health again, especially after my husband's heart attack. Now his health has improve so much and we wish we never left the plan because his doctor's seen the down turn and now the great improvement over-all in his health. We learned our lesson. We are choosing to be healthy, we are sticking to the Protein Power LifePlan, for our very lives. And I hope others can benefit as much as we have. Here is to good health and happy lives.

Rating:
Summary: Amazon[.com]'s Reviewer Needs to get a Clue
Review: I'm an ex Army Master Fitness Instructor that has trained literally hundreds of young adults and helped them to lose weight, get in shape and recover from injuries, ... The carbohydrate heavy food pyramid has been discredited by many if not most of even the most conservative health practitioners. It is even about to be yanked and revised by dramatically lowering the suggested carbohydrate intake. Study after study has revealed how easilly carbs are converted into sugars and stored as fat. More studies have also demonstrated that those folks who restrict fat intake lower there cholesterol all right....even the good cholesterol (HDL) and restricted fat diets can even cause an increase in triglyceride levels. This is probably the best book on the market right now for those who want to lose fat effectively and safely.

Rating:
Summary: Sensible approach to diet!
Review: The doctors Eades debunk much popular diet myth, while presenting logical arguments based in objective research, encouraging us to readopt the diet that has healthfully sustained mankind for literally millions of years.

The doctors Eades really struck a chord with me and these days that's not too difficult. It's been my third week off coffee and I've feeling fantastic. The headaches are gone and no more acid stomach thanks to a coffee replacement I found called s o y f e e. Made from soya and I bought it online at www.s oycoffee.com. Simply marvelous, just like this book.

Rating:
Summary: Eat better, don't feel hungry and still lose weight!!
Review: This book is relatively extreme in the amount of protein and fat recommended. The two diabolically opposed gurus are Dr. Atkins, with a recommendation of almost 90% of calories coming from fat and protein, and Dr. Ornish, who recommends only 10% of calories via fat and protein. Drs Eades recommend a diet much closer to the Atkins diet. They recommend eating as much protein as you can, and don't worry about fat. This is good advice for obese patients looking to lose over 50 pounds, but may not be a great maintenance diet. A better long-term diet would be more like the one Dr. Sears recommends in his "Zone" books, which is 40% carbs and 60% fat and protein. In fact, my balance is about 50/50 and I'm about where I want to be. Just remember to include a good amount of protein in every meal, and avoid large carb-ridden snacks, and you'll lose weight. As far as Ornish's diet is concerned, well, SOME people have an excellent insulin metabolism system and can handle 90% carbs, but most of us CANNOT. 90% carbs is ridiculous, and is the main reason for American illnesses such as Diabetes, Hypertension, and Heart Disease, and in my opinion, even Cancer. The theoretical and statistical basis for these claims can be found in the book entitled The Failures of American Medicine.

Rating:
Summary: The Eades do it again!
Review: This is without a doubt the best diet I have ever tried...and the most medically/scientifically sound. I do wish they would stop dumbing down the process for determining protein intake, etc. For that reason I prefer the first book for accuracy's sake, but this one is LOADED with updated information that makes it a good companion to the first.

I had tried Ornish's plan in the past and my LDL levels were off the map as a result. I switched to PP and the return to health has been nothing short of miraculous in the eyes of my numerous doctors (one of whom is currently on this plan himself after watching my improvements!) I have PCOS and hypothyroidism. Ornish made the PCOS problems worse and did not help me in any way at keeping blood lipids in a reasonable range. The Eades's diet is amazing--it has totally made it possible for me to lose weight and conceive a child. I don't have enough stars to rate this book.