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Joel Fuhrman Books/Approach


Thank you @dms1. That does interest me, as a friend who is a strong advocate of the vegan diet recommended both authors in the same breath! And also mentioned some others, whose work on the value of plant-based nutrition I haven’t had a chance to look at yet: Michael Greger, Neil Bernard, John McDougal, Caldwell Esselstyn. I was a bit boggled by the long list, and Joel F looked like a good place to start, as I could see he had books on Amazon (& then there’s which to choose, if any).

I note that some of these were written maybe 4-8 years ago. And there’s been the recent information/study about saturated fat as not linked with insulin issues. So I wonder if they are even up to date, still. Especially as my friend was citing the combination of substance and fat in the blood as ‘the issue’, rather than carbohydrate. And listed those authors. I’m a bit confused as I’ve been favouring a low carb approach for a year or more - and am certainly a normal weight again from that, which can’t be bad.

Would be very glad if anyone can throw more light on these issues as there are so many advocates of this or that approach out there. Maybe the content of their material suits some people
 

Regarding the coconut oil, he doesn’t like added fat/oil of any kind. His main focus is whole food. Eat it as it came out of the ground or off the tree. He really hates processed oils, and says other oils should be used sparingly. Eat the olives, skip the oil I did search his book - The End of Diabetes (which I like) and I see coconut shavings used as a sprinkle in some recipes, and some coconut milk. I personally keep a bottle of high smoke point avocado oil on hand, sometimes the grill needs a little oil unless I want to be scraping 1/2 my meal off later.

In terms of the best plan, I think it’s just so individual. Look at the recipes almost all include in their books - what appeals to you most? Start there. If after 3 months or so, you feel good, and your blood tests come out well, then problem solved.

One of the reasons I like Furhman is that, to me, he’s less ridged than most of the other you mentioned. Having a history of learning towards disordered eating, I really can’t do strict rules around food. He basically says eat the “perfect” healthy diet 85-90% of the time and just don’t stress about the rest of it. And don’t worry about tracking exact macronutrients or hitting exact numbers. That works for me. Sometimes you just NEED peanut butter slathered on a chocolate bar...
 

If this works for you - that's absolutely wonderful! And it plainly does.

Anyone with a history of disordered eating needs to be very careful, and I love the idea of not being stressed out.

I totally believe in the idea of my eating what suits my diabetes, and others eating what suits theirs. No hassle about each others' chosen ways of eating.

I'm gld you're here and posting about an alternative that might suit some members


edited for spelling, as usual
 
I totally agree with everyone who reminds us that what and how you eat is an individual decision based on how you, personally, react to a given food. The only way to know how you react is to test your BGLs after eating - something that is reiterated again and again by forum members. Such useful advice from these forums!
 
My husband is T2 and is very interested in this way of eating. He has recently gone veggie but doesn't eat eggs or have cow's milk (his choices). He does still have cheese and that's fine with me.

I was fine with him being flexi and having meat a couple of times a week; I'd have been OK with him eating it whenever he wanted it - whatever floats his boat - but he chose veggie.

We will be taking a close look at this way of eating for him; it sounds ideal. He'd like to come off the metformin and at the moment his HbA1C is in the high 30's - 38 or 39 - as it has been for many years. We'll read the book and talk,
 

We share some inclinations there! Especially peanut butter on chocolate

Interesting about the whole foods/no separated out oils. Sounds quite Paleo-like.

And thank you for posting about the avocado oil. Lots of my cooking and eating style seems to favour oils, so that seems a stretch, but I guess you’d get used to it if really loving the JF approach. Many thanks for this information @Walking Girl - it’s really useful.
 

"Further, the decrease in HDL cholesterol and higher triglyceride levels seen in some studies need to be considered. Whether these changes in CVD risk markers are clinically meaningful or associated with poor CVD outcomes needs to be closely assessed"

was the bit that worried me the most.. Lower HDL and higher trigs are really not a good idea..
 

If you drill down into most of the individual studies, you will see people stopped following the exact diet protocol between the time frames given. A little misdirection on the part of the author, IMO. Which is why I continue to say your best bet is to choose the plan that you will enjoy the most, long term.

My cholesterol went from borderline before adopting Furhmans plan to to ideal in every measure, including the ( supposed) dreaded triglyceride increase and HDL decrease, which did not happen for me. My HDL went up, my triglycerides way down. After 1 year on his plan , my triglycerides went from 3.15 to less than 1. HDL from 1 to 1.5 (regular exercise raises HDL). LDL from over 2 to 1.3, which is why I say the best plan is so individual. FWIW, my fasting insulin dropped dramatically too, into the ideal range by any measure. 3.9 uIU ( fasting BG of 83 = 4.6) on my last test.

Your friend has read one theory of the cause of T2. But no one really knows for sure... not yet anyway.
 
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I did notice that the author of the study disclosed a vested interest - and so I interpret her findings as biased towards wanting to highlight the benefits of one type of dietary approach. I have an open mind and am interested to see what works, either way. And have to consider, personally, what I think is compatible with my lifestyle and habits.

It’s good to be reminded that exercises raises HDL - I really struggle to add more exercise into my days, partly due to a demanding work schedule that requires a lot of sitting, using a laptop.
 
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