Six common beliefs addressed, Part 27

1. Doesn't protein putrefy in the large intestine?

Simple biology disproves this, as animal protein is taken up by the small intestine and very little of it ever reaches the large intestine.

The only studies that have shown an abnormal amount of undigested, "purified" protein, in the lower intestine, has been of plant protein. That's not surprising, considering that plant proteins are completely unusable by the human body. These proteins turn to waste, taking up space in your lower intestine, and causing all kinds of ailments besides "putrefaction".

2. Does lowering of cholesterol not prevent all cause mortality?

That is irrelevant because all studies on cholesterol are in the context of cardiovascular outcomes only, not all cause mortality.

3. If my 1 hour postprandial blood glucose goes over 140 mg/dL, am I diabetic?

Quote from Dr. Richard Bernstein, -- "The nondiabetic ordinarily maintains blood sugar immaculately within a narrow range—usually between 80 and 100 mg/dl (milligrams per deciliter), with most people hovering near 85 mg/dl. There are times when that range can briefly stretch up or down—as high as 160 mg/dl and as low as 65." --

Many other instances have been documented where 1 hour blood glucose peaks have registered as high as 190 mg/dL, with no diabetes. Because 1 hour blood glucose can vary so much, between individuals, without any indication of disease, it is best to test 2 hours after meals, as that's the best way to avoid conflicting results.

4. Can you be obese but still metabolically healthy?

There is no such thing as 'metabolically healthy obesity'. That's just a term used by failed weight loss strategists. There is only obesity that is still 'metabolically functional'. Not all metabolically abnormal people are obese, but all obese people are metabolically abnormal.

Just because you have not developed diabetes yet, does not mean you are healthy. Obesity is a sign of metabolic stress, which always leads to pathology, unless the obesity is reversed. The only obese people who never develop insulin resistance/diabetes are the ones who die of cardiovascular disease or other diseases of insulin toxicity, first. This is why there are no 300 lb. centenarians. There is always significant decline in health, with obesity, the older you become, because obesity always catches up to you. Our bodies were not designed to be obese.

5. Does a diet have to consist of only donuts for it to be harmful?

If you starve yourself enough, you can have a diet of 100% donuts and not be immediately harmed. 

If you have one donut, every day, and water fast in between, you can achieve temporary blood glucose levels that would be as stable as if you ate a "healthy" diet. But eventually, the sugar in your one donut, protein deficiency and all that fasting will deteriorate your blood glucose control and you will revert to metabolic dysfunction. 

So yes, a diet that consists of only donuts would be very harmful, but a diet does not have to be only donuts to be harmful. Any diet that disrupts proper blood glucose regulation is harmful. 

6. Is it true that diabetes causes obesity, obesity does not cause diabetes?

False. There are many diabetics that are not obese and many obese that are not diabetics. 

Some people do not have fat cells that can expand enough to divert energy away from their organs and they develop the most intractable forms of diabetes/insulin resistance. Fat mass is protective. Therefore, if it's expanded, it means that your body is under assault and you are on the road to diabetes, you just haven't reached your destination yet.

Obesity is a sign that the body is under metabolic stress. There is only so far that your fat mass will expand to protect you, before it cannot anymore. Limits are individualized and the fat mass on your body is not indicative of what your limit is. Some people become diabetic at much lower body fat levels, than others, but excess body fat accumulation is the alarm that the body is sounding to indicate that something is going wrong. 

As if that wasn't harmful enough, getting fat requires super insulin sensitivity at the level of the fat cell. The fatter you are, the more insulin sensitive your fat mass is. This in itself causes a slew of other abnormalities that only head in one direction - towards metabolic dysfunction. This includes increased insulin resistance of the tissues and organs, not allowing them to manage energy properly. An abnormal metabolic condition must be present, for the person to get fat, and this involves multiple hormonal feedback loops that are not working properly. So, even when the growing fat mass is helping you, it's killing you at the same time.