Super Immunity (19 page)

Of all plant proteins, the essential amino acid distribution of soy is said to be the most “complete,” meaning the closest to animal protein; soy has higher levels of many of the essential amino acids than other plant foods. While animal and soy proteins contain a greater content of essential amino acids, other plant proteins contain more than adequate amounts for human nutrition.
³¹
To discern the differences between the effects of soy and nonsoy plant protein, researchers broke down vegan women's protein intake further. They found that nonsoy plant protein was associated with lower IGF-1 levels, but soy protein was associated with higher IGF-1 levels.

It was noted by Dean Ornish's Prostate Cancer Lifestyle Trial that a low-fat vegan diet with supplemental soy protein did increase IGF-1, but it also increased the IGF-binding proteins; as a result, soy in moderate amounts did not have a significant effect on free IGF-1.
³²
These results imply that soy protein, while it may raise IGF-1 levels, is still not as risky as animal protein. However, the more we concentrate these proteins and take them in an isolated form, the more potential they have to stimulate IGF-1 production. Dietary interventions using
isolated
soy protein have reported higher increases in IGF-1 than those using soybeans alone.
³³
The bottom line: whole soybeans or minimally processed soy foods (such as tofu and tempeh) are acceptable; however, trying to build more muscle with
isolated
soy protein concentrates (such as powders) is not advisable.

High levels of IGF-1 are certainly detrimental to health, since they are strongly linked to cancers and also associated with all-cause mortality and cardiovascular mortality. Minimizing or avoiding animal protein and isolated soy protein should be the goal, to keep IGF-1 levels in a safe range. As for IGF-1 levels getting too
low,
you do not have to be concerned as long as you are eating a broad assortment of health-promoting plant foods.

The take-home message here is that animal protein—even egg whites and lean white meat—is not longevity-favorable and that our society's obsession with overconsuming protein is at the root of our epidemic of cancer. Super Immunity can only be achieved with a diet designed to be significantly lower in animal products than most of us consume today.

The key component to obtaining incredible health is to eat more vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds, beans, and other nutrient-rich foods. As you eat larger amounts of these protective foods, you will meet your body's micronutrient needs and naturally reduce the amount of animal products and processed foods in your diet without gimmicks, calorie counting, or portion control. The foods highest in life-extending micronutrients and lowest in calories are green vegetables. As you know by now, they form the basis of my nutritarian diet. If you are overweight, the more greens you eat, and the less of everything else you eat, the thinner and healthier you will become. All humans are dependent on a sufficient amount of green vegetable–derived nutrients, and some of these nutrients should be consumed in their raw form for maximum benefit. This means that a large salad each day, with lettuce and other greens, tomatoes, and other raw vegetables, is important.

Eating high on the nutrient density line is important, but we also need enough nutritional variety to meet all the body's nutrient needs. To meet those needs in a manner that pushes your immune function to the max, you need to make sure your food choices cover all the bases that enable you to achieve Super Immunity. Here are five simple rules for a powerful immune system that you should commit to memory:

1. Eat a large salad every day.

2. Eat at least a half-cup serving of beans/legumes in soup, salad, or another dish once daily.

3. Eat at least three fresh fruits a day, especially berries, pomegranate seeds, cherries, plums, oranges.

4. Eat at least one ounce of raw nuts and seeds a day.

5. Eat at least one large (double-size) serving of green vegetables daily, either raw, steamed, or in soups or stews.

Avoid these five deadliest foods:

1. Barbecued meat, processed meat, and commercial red meat

2. Fried foods

3. Full-fat dairy (cheese, ice cream, butter, whole milk) and trans fats (margarine)

4. Soft drinks, sugar, and artificial sweeteners

5. White-flour products

Now that you know what foods are
super
foods and what you should be eating for Super Immunity, the question is how much processed food, french fries, pizza, burgers, and fried rice you can eat and still be protected. And if you love meat, I bet you're wondering how much animal product you can eat and still stay healthy.

The answer? I don't know for sure, and nobody does—but my review of the world's scientific literature over the last twenty years suggests that the combination of processed foods and animal products should comprise less than 10 percent of your total caloric intake; go beyond that and you start to pay a significant price in health issues. In general, try to eat not more than one or two foods a day that are not health-supporting.

If you are a female eating between 1,400 and 1,800 calories a day, only 150 calories a day should come from animal products and refined carbohydrates (such as you'd find in a cookie or white pasta). The remainder of the food should come from natural plant foods such as green vegetables, beans, seeds, and nuts. If you are a male and eating between 1,800 and 2,400 calories a day, no more than 200 calories should be from these foods.

This means that if you're using a few tablespoons of oil, you've used up your allotment of low-nutrient calories. So if you're having an animal protein for dinner, don't have the oil. Or if you're eating a bagel, don't have the animal protein.

Whole-grain bread, whole-grain pasta, and whole-grain cereal would not have to be considered in this limit, of course. Only products made of white flour or processed grains would fall in the processed food category.

Keep in mind that 150 and 200 calories are the daily low-nutrient limits for most women and men. The following list shows some examples of foods and indicates how much of each food it takes to wipe out your daily calorie allotment:

When it comes to the animal products or the processed foods you choose to eat, make sure you're making the best choices given what's available. Fast-food hamburgers made from factory-bred cows are just too dangerous a food to consume on a regular or even limited basis.

So I recommend choosing eggs, grass-fed meats, clean wild fish, and naturally raised, hormone-free poultry. Likewise, when it comes to sweets, homemade is always better, with dried or fresh fruit as the sweetening agent, not conventional sweeteners. Speaking of homemade, why not have a delicious cookie, cake, or ice cream from choices supplied in the recipe section that concludes this book?

Over time most nutritarians (including me) come to
enjoy
the healthier options more than the conventional fast, junk, or overly processed foods. Once you start eating for health, these other options will become less and less appealing, and before too long any cravings or desires will simply disappear.

More good news is that my years of experience in the nutrition field have led to wonderful relationships with top chefs the world over. And what I can report is that from the top chefs down, the quality and super-healthy nature of what's available is beginning to change. “Gourmet” no longer means a hunk of meat with a large side of creamy potatoes. We now have some of the best chefs in the world making the healthiest foods. We can have an immune-supporting, cancer-protective diet—and make it great-tasting as well.

A survey of thousands of nutritarians adopting this diet-style for health and longevity found that after an adjustment period of a few months, the vast majority eventually enjoyed the new foods and recipes as much as or more than their old diets.
³⁴
What may seem radical at the moment will soon become delicious and life-changing.

E
very day we have hundreds of choices to make about what we put into our bodies. Some of these choices can be difficult to navigate without the facts. There is a great deal of misinformation floating around, and time and again I have seen individuals make important health decisions based on faulty information. Through my practice working with patients, I have answered and continue to answer tens of thousands of specific questions about these very choices.

In the pages that follow I have carefully selected the most important and practical information we need to know—everything from quantities of animal protein and salt, to sources for omega-3s, to dos and don'ts of vitamin supplements. I provide specific recommendations that answer some of the most debated questions in the health field, supported by the latest scientific data available.

It is important to remember that changing the way you eat may not happen overnight. However, thousands of people have already made this change and found that it was easier and more delicious than they expected. As your health improves with superior nutrition, your taste buds also get stronger and you learn to love what you are eating. It takes time to create new food preferences, but the wait will be worth it—and my recipes make it delicious too.

Throughout the book, I have offered guidelines for you on your path to Super Immunity. Because of the research done in the field of nutritional science, we have at our disposal all the facts we need. We know the foods that can lead to a long, healthy life, just as we know the foods and choices that can lead to deteriorating health. The effort you expend to improve your health pays you back one hundredfold. Your good health forms the basis of your success and happiness in life.