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Old 08-21-2009, 05:57 PM   #1  
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Default Bob Harper goes Vegetarian, Cholesterol drops

According to September 2009 edition of Vegetarian Times, Bob Harper is now vegetarian. As a result, his cholesterol dropped 100 points.

He cites his inspiration as Skinny ***** (ugh!) and Engine 2 Diet (very good).

http://vegetarianstar.com/2009/08/06...sterol-points/
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Old 08-21-2009, 08:39 PM   #2  
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Hmm, when I went veg, my cholesterol didn't change. But it wasn't high to begin with.
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Old 08-21-2009, 09:06 PM   #3  
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I have to tell you....I read Skinny B**** and hated it. I did not make any recipes and found the text not only mean spirited, but borderline illiterate. I also did not find the recipes to be true vegetarian.
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Old 08-22-2009, 03:36 PM   #4  
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I didn't have high cholesterol but my cholesterol still dropped about 60 points or so, same thing happened to my husband. We are now both in the very low 100s (like 110-120).

I also didn't read skinny ***** and had no desire to. I think though it was only one of the books he read that helped him make the decision.
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Old 08-22-2009, 05:28 PM   #5  
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The odd thing that I've noticed is that most of my friends who have become vegetarian have actually gotten BIGGER rather than smaller. One in particular eats a TON of white wonder bread and margarine sandwiches. Vegetarian? Yes. Healthy? NO!

Being a vegetarian doesn't mean being healthy BECAUSE you are a vegetarian. I know LOTS of vegetarians who eat potato chips, granola bars, rice, potatoes, seasoned rice cakes, french fries, and so on who have quite the health and weight issues. And I know LOTS of people who eat a ton of fish and rice and have fabulous cholesterol levels. In fact, my MD says that if someone comes in with high triglyceride blood levels, she knows they've been carbing out...


Kira

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Old 08-22-2009, 05:33 PM   #6  
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Well calories are still calories. And it is possible to be a junk food vegan/vegetarian.

My diet is about 70% carbs and my triglycerides are low, as I said my cholesterol is below average. (actually my doc said it was the lowest he has ever seen).

I personally believe a whole foods vegan diet is the healthiest diet out there and honestly I love what I eat. Of course others may not and that is up to them as to what they eat.

Oh and the Engine 2 diet book is excellent. It was a firefighter's mission to get his and his fellow firefighter's cholesterol down so the book shows some cholesterol charts for a number of people. It is definitely a whole foods vegan diet.

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Old 08-22-2009, 05:58 PM   #7  
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Hmm, when I went veg, my cholesterol didn't change. But it wasn't high to begin with.
I heard Jillian Michaels talk about this on her radio show, how Bob Harper's cholesterol drop low when he became a vegan but hers didn't move more this 5 points when she gave up meat and the reason the BL shows doctor said is that Bob family is predisposed to have very high cholesterol, strokes and heartaches, in fact his mother died rather young from a heart attack. Jillian' family doesn't have that risk factor. Personally my mom makes bad cholesterol just by looking a butter and my Dad naturally has very low bad cholesterol and high good cholesterol, it's all genetics's.

I hope that helps.

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Old 08-22-2009, 07:57 PM   #8  
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I heard Jillian Michaels talk about this on her radio show, how Bob Harper's cholesterol drop low when he became a vegan but hers didn't move more this 5 points when she gave up meat and the reason the BL shows doctor said is that Bob family is predisposed to have very high cholesterol, strokes and heartaches, in fact his mother died rather young from a heart attack. Jillian' family doesn't have that risk factor. Personally my mom makes bad cholesterol just by looking a butter and my Dad naturally has very low bad cholesterol and high good cholesterol, it's all genetics's.

I hope that helps.
Genetics are a factor but also just giving up meat versus going vegan is quite different. All the studies I've read regarding giving up animal products and cholesterol had to do with a vegan diet. What I was amazed about is the fact that in parts of the world where a whole foods vegan (or mostly vegan) diet is eaten, American 'good' cholesterol numbers are still higher than even their worst cholesterol numbers. Of course the studies also addressed those who are living in the US from the same cultures and they are still as likely to get high cholesterol as other Americans.
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Old 08-23-2009, 03:37 PM   #9  
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Nelie, what countries / regions have a traditionally vegan diet?
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Old 08-23-2009, 04:38 PM   #10  
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Nelie, what countries / regions have a traditionally vegan diet?
Certain parts of asia, also I believe certain parts of africa. A large part of China doesn't eat animal products or at least didn't until fairly recently. Poorer parts still don't because animal products are expensive but they are becoming more prevalent in more parts of China these days.

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Old 08-23-2009, 05:14 PM   #11  
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Quote:
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Genetics are a factor but also just giving up meat versus going vegan is quite different. All the studies I've read regarding giving up animal products and cholesterol had to do with a vegan diet. What I was amazed about is the fact that in parts of the world where a whole foods vegan (or mostly vegan) diet is eaten, American 'good' cholesterol numbers are still higher than even their worst cholesterol numbers. Of course the studies also addressed those who are living in the US from the same cultures and they are still as likely to get high cholesterol as other Americans.
Well it's a little bit more complex then that really, genetics do play a huge part in how our bodies react to food ie nutrients. I'll give you an example, the average fair skinned person can get their necessary daily vitamin D from 15 minutes of sun exposure, but someone with African American heritage it is near impossible for them to get their necessary daily vitamin D from the sun, because of their genetic make-up, they have more melanin in the skin which is the reason their skin is darker.

Meat is not the real villain in our diets it is corn syrup and trans fats, medical studies have found that corn syrup and trans fats to be the real smoking gun when it comes to high cholesterol. With the introduction of corn syrup and trans fats (processed vegetable oil) in the 1970's into the America food supply this is the real cause for the obesity ie cholesterol rate to rise dramatically. Our ancestor's eat fresh fruit, vegetables, whole grains, beans, dairy, honey and lean game. And there is a difference between veganism and vegetarianism I want to point out. As I am sure you know vegans will not eat or wear or use any product derived from an animal or insect. Vegetarian don't eat meat, some will eat dairy or eggs or fish, some don't, but most will wear wool and silk and will eat honey. Again medical studies have confirmed that corn syrup and trans fats well basically all processed foods are killing us. Medical studies also confirm a well balanced diet with meat, fresh fruit, vegetables, whole grains, beans, dairy, honey and lean game but with no processed foods is good for us. But I personal don't eat red meat because I feel that they way most cattle not all cattle is raise and slaughtered is not humane but I won't tell anyone else how to live. I would rather spend my time and energy getting food company's and the government to ban trans fats and corn syrup from schools and ultimately out of our food supply, It is not the consumption of meat that is giving America high cholesterol but really it's corporate greed that is giving people high cholesterol. If doctor's hadn't told us about corn syrup and trans fats (processed vegetable oil) no vegan or vegetarian would know that they too are at risk for obesity and high cholesterol.
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Old 08-23-2009, 05:40 PM   #12  
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IgetfitNstrongforme - I think there are many factors that compose a healthy or an unhealthy diet. My concerns with animal products are many which include environmental effects, health effects and overall abuses in farming techniques. Animal consumption has a large effect on our environment and even animal product manufacturing is having a large effect. Factoring out the environmental effects, I think we've proven that it is bad for people to live with lots of stress, how is it for people to eat animals and animal products that live with lots of stress? Beyond whether someone cares about an animal should be treated, it would seem that excessive stressed caused to animals would affect those who consume the products from that same animal. Also, factory farmed animals are pumped full of hormones in order to grow faster and also antibiotics in order to control disease in the unnatural nature they are raised. Then at animal proteins itself, the countries with highest incidence of diabetes, heart disease and cancer are also the countries that eat the most animal products.* This is simply correlation but there are certain things that are known such as dairy being linked to diabetes type 1 in children and prostrate cancer in men. The fact that your chances of heart attack and the fact that your cholesterol increases dramatically after eating red meat. The fact that mercury levels in fish is continuing to rise but the message still put out there is 'eat fish'. The animals and animal products eaten in the US are from animals fed an unnatural diet. Corn is cheap but corn isn't what cows, chickens or other animals would live on naturally.

So then what about other factors? The fact that corn is huge, whether it is the feed given to animals that people eat or if it is the fact that corn is in everything, it is definitely an unnatural state for humans. Transfat/hydrogenated oils are definitely an issue. Both of the above though can be avoided through a whole foods diet.

So yes we have genetics in play but we also have whatever else we do. I wouldn't dismiss genetics but I was originally trying to point out that even though we may be disposed to something via our genetic code, we may be able to control it greatly by our actions.

And also I am aware of the difference between vegan and vegetarian. A vegan diet (no animal products in food) and vegan lifestyle (no animal products in food/ or in products buy/wear) are how I would differentiate the diet of the vegan and the overall lifestyle of a vegan. The real difference is those that follow a vegan diet are usually only concerned about health while those that follow a vegan diet are generally concerned about the environment, animal welfare and possibly health.

*I am aware that there are 2 distinct cultures in the world that have a large amount of animal products in their diet and have low incidence of disease.
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Old 08-25-2009, 01:28 PM   #13  
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Just to toss in one more opinion - I don't think the verdicts are completely in on cholesterol as a whole yet, anyway. In Europe, Nelie's cholesterol would be treated for being too low (or they'd try, anyway), and there are some studies that indicate low cholesterol contributes to poor cognition as one ages. I'm one of those genetic freaks with naturally high numbers, and yet no one in my family, on EITHER side, has died of heart-related issues in six generations. That being said ... I do my best to eat clean, whole foods, and generally confine my red meat to wild venison or grass-fed and finished beef. And no, my numbers didn't drastically change when I changed my diet. My HDL only responds to exercise, going from high to higher, and my LDL did drop about 10% when I stopped eating factory-made junk. I plan on taking a VAP test later this year to confirm or reject my doctor's theory - that the LDL contains little to no VLDL, and if that becomes the case, I'll be put into a cholesterol study for the long haul (that's NOT funded by Big Pharm or Big Food!). And if we're lucky, in 30 years we'll know the story.
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Old 08-30-2009, 07:31 PM   #14  
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well , i was vegetarian for a long time , but it doesnt get you healthier if you all over the bad carbs ..

I also my cholesteral didn't change at all
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