Heart attacks

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

The other major diet phenomenon of the recent past has been Dr Dean Ornish’s plan. The Ornish approach is similar to Pritikin’s. It calls for severe total fat restriction and liberal consumption of carbohydrates. He also emphasizes exercise and relaxation techniques. In several small studies, he has demonstrated improved vascular health as a result of his diet. The biggest problem that I see in the Ornish approach is one that he readily acknowledges: it is very difficult to follow. Another issue is its restriction of total fats. The polyunsaturated and mono-unsaturated fats are good for you and your vessels. So why not use them to make meals taste better? Also troubling is that in selected patients, the high carb intake can induce the predicaments syndrome we’ll discuss in chapter nine. Since at least one – quarter of Americans are predisposed to this syndrome, and it is present in more than 50 percent of those who have had heart attacks, it is no small concern, Onish developed his diet when the deleterious effect of carbs was virtually unknown. Today, Dr Ornish is putting greater emphasis on high – fibre carbohydrates that will not reduce prediabetes.

I know and admire Dr Atkins and Dr Ornish. They have successfully fought conventional wisdom and have both contributed to America’s growing focus on heart attack prevention via improved diet and lifestyle. They have been criticized for the commercial success of their programmers but have persevered. Unless someone popularizes the science of nutrition, America and the UK will never get their difficulties with obesity and heart disease under control.