While watching the news early this morning, I caught this weird 'public
service announcement'.

Woman driving in a car, ominous voice over starts out "In the headlong
rush to lose weight..." and goes on to tell us of the health risks of
cutting out "essential carbohydrates": high blood pressure, heart disease,
and (pause for effect...) cancer.

I caught the Web site, it's the Partnership for Essential Nutrition:
http://www.essentialnutrition.org/
I remember seeing something about this outfit earlier in the summer.
There is some big money behind it and it was founded by Shape Up America.

As usual, it creates a strawman diet in which people are "eating unlimited
amounts of meat and fat".

From http://www.essentialnutrition.org/lowcarb.php

"The United States is in the midst of a skyrocketing obesity epidemic.
Today, more than 60 percent of American adults are overweight or obese,
according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and
many are investing in diet books, such as those promising rapid weight
loss in a matter of weeks by greatly restricting the intake of
carbohydrates while eating unlimited amounts of meat and fat."

But, wait! That's not all! They can have it both ways, because "... the
prime reason that low-carbohydrate diets work at all is that people on
these plans consume fewer calories than the body needs, which is the same
principle used by every other diet." All this while eating those
unlimited amounts of meat and fat. Pretty good trick!

There's a lot of "according to scientists" and "according to doctors and
nutritionists" and "numerous studies have shown" (all unspecified) strewn
throughout, something that always makes me suspicious.

One thing they do have right, though -- their survey showed that the
average American is woefully uninformed about what carbohydrates are and
which foods contain them.

On a side note, in this context I find it interesting that my maintenance
level will probably be around 90-100g of carbs a day (a mere 25% reduction
in the recommended 130g per day).

Dan
325/199/180
Atkins since 1/1/02 (yeah, it was a New Year's Resolution)
Besetting sins: good beer, German bread, and Krispy Kremes