Adding fat to potato starch will significantly decrease its GI, will it not?

I think a much healthier alternative would be yams/sweet potatoes fried in coconut oil/butter/ghee (less prone to oxidation) and consumed with protein and fat (say, a steak).  That should give you far more nutrients, much lower blood sugar spike, and avoid the oxidation problems of frying in PUFA.

Are the dietary AGEs from frying really the concern, or is it all the carbs from the potato starch causing in vivo glycation that we should really be worrying about and avoided? You would have to have a seriously leaky gut for an undigested AGE from frying to get absorbed in the small intestine.

I keep as low processed carb as possible, but my one vice is french fries.
Why did you have to guilt me into removing my favorite food?

I can't imagine eating boiled T-bones. What's left after frying and roasting?

The AHA has a page  with heavy duty oils used in restaurants. Many of them have TBHQ and/or dimethylpolysiloxane. TBHQ is used to keep the oil from becoming rancid and the dimethylpolysiloxane is an antifoaming agent. I can't imagine that either is good for us.

Dr Davis, without sugars, there is no glycation, thus there is no advanced glycation end products either.

Fried bacon for example would not contain AGEs because it would not contain sugars to begin with. This seems to indicate that the real culprit is the sugars, not the frying. But then, if we fry bacon in vegetables oils, then forget about the sugars or the frying, it's the oil. Also consider that ketosis stimulates chaperon mediated autophagy:
http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/ketones-and-ketosis/ketosis-cleans-our-cells/

Basically, if your diet induces ketosis, you got nothing to worry about. First because such a diet contains little to no sugars. And second, whatever AGEs are there are taken care of promptly enough. HbA1c comes to mind.

1. Peel the skin off the potato.
2. Throw away the inside of the potato.
3. Bake the skin.
4. Eat and enjoy the skin. It's loaded with fiber.

And ... dear doctor, don't forget to mention that potatoes are nightshades. They contain lectins and glycoalkaloids. These cause a leaky gut and autoimmune diseases http://bit.ly/a9Gvjk

French fries used to be fried in beef tallow before the CSPI stepped in. Proper french fries are made from fresh potatoes and fried twice. The "french fries" served in most restaurants are just frankenfood - precooked, preGodknowsWhat. The French still know how to prepare them properly...And by the way, isn't there the thing called "the French paradox"? Seems that they manage to stay leaner and healthier in spite of the consumption of "pommes frites". They DO, however, still eat real food - and this maybe one of the major aspects of good health.

French fries are partly pre-cooked in factories that use fats heated for days on end. The cheaper brands go thru the darker more heat damaged oils later in the cycle, The oils I've seen used are AV oil (animal fat with hydrogenated fats) and palm oil.
These days it is likely soy oil.

And for someone else on the topic of bacon it should be noted most bacon has added sugars. So it will be an AGE source
to some extent.

Fried bacon is a different beast. My butcher makes it from fresh meat and the sugar in it comes probably from the milk he dips the bacon in before he fries it. And the absolute quantity of this sugar would be insignificant in terms of preventing ketosis which would allow ketosis to take place along with its CMA.

Even if there was a lot of AGEs in the food, I doubt that it would have any significant effect. Instead, I believe that it's the AGEs that are formed inside the body as a result of hyperglycemia that is most harmful. Again, HbA1c comes to mind.

The moral of the story, don't use refined oils. Use the most naturally saturated oils as you can find, like Coconut oil or Ghee/Tallow. Then fry away, not too frequently.

Regarding AGEs, I don't think they matter too much from the food source, as they will first get digested.

Also humans have been cooking meat and Tubers (some form of potatoes) for ages, possibly more than a million years ago. So heating the oils should not be considered bad.

Why do we like the fried crispy potatoes or bacon more than the raw one? Has it got something to do with our evolution.

Fries?  Meh, small potatoes.

I nominate the donut:  white flour and white sugar deep fried in hot vegetable oil.

There's your poster boy of dietary badness.

Dang, no GMO corn in them there fries!  Oh well.

"I can't imagine eating boiled T-bones. What's left after frying and roasting?"

Try putting in well covered baking dish and cook at very low temp, maybe 225 or 250, for longer time depending on thickness of the meat. Maybe toss in some mushrooms and onions and a wee bit of red wine or even water. It will come out super tender and juicy.

"I can't imagine eating boiled T-bones. What's left after frying and roasting?"

Use a slow cooker.

I would like to announce that I am a recovering vegetarian. Started by reducing wheat. Have not had Fries for the longest time because of the unsaturated veg/canola oil.

Need to loose some weight so will try Atkins' methods but I am gonna miss beans and beer :-(

i use virgin coconut oil for some homemade french fries. is that bad too?

"I am gonna miss beans and beer"

I'm sure your friends won't

I love (hate) how a hamburger plate with a bun and a Mountain of fries,  gives the three to four ounces of ground beef (and maybe not the best grade of beef but still..) a bad reputation as the cause of all things evil in our diet.  Wake the F up people.

Not to change the subject but a couple of people mentioned coconut oil. I have read Barry Sears insisting that coconut oil promotes inflammation.
He also says it raises LDL.  This seems contrary to anything else I've read.

tommy i think barry is misled

Good article! Thank you so much for sharing this post.Your views truly open my mind.

Martin--

You may be confusing endogenous AGEs with exogenous AGEs.

Endogenous AGEs are formed via glucose-mediated glycation. Exogenous AGEs are formed via a long list of reactions that involve carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. Exogenous AGEs are not indicated by HbA1c.

Darwin's docter, you might want to do a tad of research on potato skins before suggesting people eat them.  Most of the poisons in a tater are in the skin, including potent goitrogens.  Eating the peel is probably not a good idea.

Keenan,

Very interesting factoids for sure!
Let me pose this question to you.
If you could eat a few french fries once in a while, would it be enough to satisfy that fried food craving?  Well, the real answer here might be discipline and moderation.  We, unfortunately, will someday die of something.  If you are afraid of eating french fries or any other fatty bad food every once in a while there is a problem or fear that you will be missing something on this less than perfect earth.  Eat the fries,
enjoy the fries, and do the best you can within the moderate framework of life, and for goodness sake, don't be afraid of food.  It is not the real enemy.  The real enemy is a fallen world.
Pass the fries!!   Jack

The way I cook meat now (mostly) is to put a roast or chicken into a tightly covered pan, add a generous amount of olive oil, season it, and throw it into the oven at 200 degress for about 14 hours.  

It will be absolutely delicious with no risk of AGE's at such a low temperature.

Make sure it is a tight fitting lid or it will dry out too much.  If you want to make a great chili, add the onions, garlic, tomatoes, and seasonings after 10 hours of cooking.  Cook four more hours.
Hide from your kids or it will all disappear in a short time.

I use a glass pan and always avoid cooking anything in aluminum.

Excellent, Farseas! This can be a part of an effective youth-preserving, anti-aging strategy, by the way.

Do you know much about the diet he recommends to decrease inflammation and heart disease?
Thanks!

He uses a low processed carbohydrate diet. I'm afraid I did not get too far into that aspect of things with him.

Thanks for the reply. I assume by "low-processed" you mean whole grains?
Greg

Although I read Dr. lundell's book, I remain unsure about how tightly he advises processed carbohydrate control. He is clear on minimizing sugars and sugar-equivalents like sodas and fruit drinks. However, on questions like some grains, I remain unclear.

I was under the impression that CLAs only exist in animal products and that beef is particularly rich in CLAs.  I also understood that CLAs are a form of transfat, although perhaps a beneficial form, if there is such a thing.  Do you think that adding CLA is helpful for regression of plaque?  Does TYP recommend doing so?  If so, should the CLA be via a supplement and what dosage is typical?

We are putting together a clinical trial to examine this issue. I don't have any preconceived notions over whether CLA will work or not. The animal data for reversal of atherosclerosis is fabulous, almost too good to believe.

The human data on weight loss is, in aggregate, modestly promising. But will it reverse atherosclerosis in humans? We're going to try and find out.

It is my understanding that CLAs are a derivative of Parent Omega 6. I have read that the correct proportions are two parts omega 6 to one part omega 3.  This is referred to as Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs).  Lack of EFAs impede the use of oxygen and oxygenation is crucial to the miochondria of a cell.  I'm interested to see what your comments are on EFAs.

Are you aware Dr. Lundell's medical license was revoked in 2008 by the Arizona Medical Board?  Go here to read about him: www.azmd.gov

It's true.
http://azmd.gov/GLSuiteWeb/Repository/0/0/1/4/97d47a09-71b9-4f30-8bfe-78428be876c4.pdf

@anon & David,

I didn't read the whole report of the deliberations, but from reading the first one, several observations can be made:
-Dr Lundell had retired from thoracic surgery at the time of the hearings.
-The hearings concerned complaints about certain high risk surgeries done by Dr Lundell, as they are done by all thoracic surgeons.
-None of this has anything to do with a nutritional approach to halting and reducing CVD.

Hi! How about fresh juiced carrots? It's hec of carbo thing but is it slow, fast, should I just eat vegetables and fruits and not juice them?

In my book, I recommend 3 g of fish oil daily. This would normally yield about 1000 mg of EPA and DHA depending on the concentration of the supplement. This is approximately the dose that reduced sudden cardiac death by 50%, and all cause death, by 25% in patients with previous heart attack.

Heart  disease is one of the most  dangerous disease which takes thousands of life every years all over the world. If we know its symptoms and Treatment for heart disease. We can prevent is to large extent.

I've been taking fish oil since 2005.Went to a cardioligist who wrote me out a script for lipitor after my cholesterol test was a little high.Being skeptical i then went hom and researched this horrible medication and realized i could take a much healthier,cheaper and much better alternative.Well that alternative was fish oil and i'm so glad i did my research first before blindly accepting my fate.

Given the blood-thinning properties of fish oil, is it advisable to take it along with blood thinners such as Plavix or Coumadin?

Dr. Eselstyn claims that animal protein damages the endothelium.  Dr. Weil says that a high fat meal lowers artery function.   But I had a heart attack and have a stent and have been following your diet for about a year.  If I start eating significant quantities of carbs, I used to get chest pains.  Since then I have went from 305 to 235 and want to get to 175.  I got the stent three years ago.

Is there any truth to either Weil's or Esselstyn's claims?

Now I take no medication except a daily 325mg aspirin and a bunch of supplements, including hawthorne and of course, fish oil.  I control my blood pressure with medical MJ and it works great to lower my blood pressure.

Do I need to worry about saturated fat and high blood pressure?  I used to be on Plavix, blood pressure medication, and statins.  I tried three different statins and they all caused me leg pains.  In fact I seem to have chronic but intermittent leg pain since the statins.

I don't think so.

They understand this disease incompletely. I can't blame an ENT surgeon for not fully understanding a disease he has never treated.

Esselstyn says this based on the fact that animal protein has higher levels of methionine.  But this study,  Toxicity of Methionine in Humans, by Peter J. Garlick, refutes this claim:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Conclusions. Although methionine was labeled as being the most toxic amino acid in relation to growth in animals (1), the evidence in humans does not point to serious toxicity, except at very high levels of intake. Despite the function of methionine as a precursor of homocysteine, and the role of homocysteine in vascular damage and cardiovascular disease, there is no evidence that dietary intake of methionine within reasonable limits will cause cardiovascular damage. A single dose of 100 mg/kg body weight has been shown to be safe, but this dose is about 7 times the daily requirement for sulfur amino acids, and repeated consumption for 1 wk was shown to result in increased homocysteine levels (37,42). Daily doses of 250 mg (i.e., 4 mg/kg per day) are only 25% of the daily requirement and have been shown to be safe. Overall, the literature suggests that the single dose which is typically given in the methionine loading test (100mg/kg/d) does not cause any serious complications, except in the extreme case when a 10-fold excess of methionine appears to have been given, and in patients who have schizophrenia or inborn errors of sulfur amino acid metabolism, such as hypermethioninemia.
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Because of the side effects, which I understand are worse with higher fat intake, I think the best use of this is following a low fat diet. It will keep you on the diet! Maybe with Ornish levels (which I do NOT believe is healthy) of fat intake the side effects will be minor.

I learned alot about the product when I visited the manufacturer's site....

http://www.myalli.com

From what I read, the side effects are preventable if you stick to a reduced calorie low fat diet.  I think I will give it a try.

Medicines we take these days are mostly prescribed over the counter. Which is preferably good on my part. But, what about medicines sold on the streets? Whether legal or not, companies are losing quite a bit of money. And who is who to say that anything let alone can be sold on the streets without the proper consent of the manufacturers, not that they would allow it, but still. Regardless how effective the drug or not, even now a days health care should most definitely be a necessity since without it you might end up paying 8 times the price. I think no matter what medicine people are prescribed, everybody should make it a priority in their lives to obtain some sort of health care.

Dr Davis:
I enjoyed hearing your voice interviewing with Jimmie, and of course, I am quite familiar with your blog photograph. To complete the picture, would you be willing to tell us a little about your own personal experience with TYP over time?


In my opinion, yours is the most compelling health care message currently available in the USA. Particularly your observation that the excesses going on in drugs and health care bear quite startling similarities to those that have developed on Wall Street during the last thirty years.

Now, what's to be done?
The nation needs you Sir!
When has there been a more important time for you and like minded physicians to come to the fore?
There is another prominent bi-racial person who could really use someone like you to coordinate  support and guidance from the profession with his health reform planning.
I do not believe you are alone. Would you please seriously consider developing a video to articulate some of the great health business changes needed to avoid another Wall Street?
I agree it seems like an impossible task until you contemplate what Barak O'Bama is up against!
Dr D., I confess I started this thought in a rather frivolous frame of mind, but the more I think about it the better it sounds! Would you consider Surgeon General?
Best Wishes for a happy and productive 2009.

MikeV
(PS: Maybe Oprah would help with the video?)

Looking forward to reading it. I am also trying to spread your blog over at Lowcarbfriends.com...

Thanks Dr. D

any thoughts on the Quest vitamin D issue of inaccurate measurement?

I thoroughly enjoyed the interview, on my mp3 player while grocery shopping, driving, etc.  Thank you for doing the interview.  Together with the other "top 5" interviewees that Jimmy posted, it was really a blockbuster week.

Currently the Japanese get 25 percent of their calories from fat which means that it is lower in fat than the average American diet. Traditionally the Japanese diet has been very low fat, only about 10 E% from fat. Taking into account that degenerative illnesses have a time lag, the previous consumption of very low fat diets is still affecting to the health of Japanese people.

The French and Spanish have a substantially higher fraction of calories from fat than Americans and also enjoy a lower rate of heart disease.

Hint: fat and saturated fat are probably not to blame for heart problems.

Japanese may have eaten low-fat, but even there the increase in fat did increase the life span, too.

Okinawans were not only known for their longevity but also for their food that was regarded very fatty in terms of the general Japanese food culture.

1) Cant canola/rapeseed oil provide ALA (DHA/EPA precursor).
In a low-PUFA diet, the conversion is supposed to be efficient.
2) Some researchers claim that EPA is not required in human body though DHA is necessary.
3)The high levels of DHA/EPA intake might reduce heart disease but could they cause other problems such as cancer, strokes etc.
What is the optimal level of omega-3 intake?

My understanding is that the Japanese have lower rates of heart attacks, but higher rates of hemorrhagic stroke than in the US. Anyone else heard this?

--Omega-3 intake (EPA + DHA) is associated with carotid intimal-medial thickness, an index of body-wide atherosclerosis.

I assume you meant to say a reduced cartoid intimal-thickness? Or would an increased thickness = less atherosclerosis?

And the increased rate of  hemorrhagic (bleeding type) stroke would make some sense, as I believe Eskimos had the same problem. But the risk of heart disease or other types of strokes are much more of a risk factor anyway.

Yes. I should have said that EPA + DHA are inversely associated with carotid intimal-medial thickness.