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On January 28, 2004, Dr. Wilshire presented the following
information to the HHS Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee:
My name is Gil Wilshire, MD, FACOG. I am a
Reproductive Endocrinologist and President and Chief
Scientific Officer of the Carbohydrate Awareness Council, Inc
(CAC). We are a newly-incorporated member organization in the
State of Virginia. We are active in organizing the sector of
the food industry that produces controlled carbohydrate foods.
Our mission is based on the foundation of scientific evidence
and honest disclosure.
I wish to briefly testify regarding the
following points:
Our current dietary guidelines (i.e. the
Food Pyramid) are based on flawed data. Virtually every
population-based or other comparative study has failed to
account for bias or confounding variables.
Specifically, the confounding variables of trans-fat
and carbohydrate consumption are conspicuously absent from
the literature. I assert that virtually every study that
has failed to control for these variables is fatally
flawed. Both these variables are now known to be important
risk factors for cardiovascular disease. [1, 2, 3]
The data from recently published,
randomized controlled trials (RCTs) has convincingly
demonstrated that the increased intake of natural dietary
fats in the context of a normo-caloric diet improves the
surrogate markers of atherosclerotic disease (i.e.
lipoprotein profiles). [4, 5, 6]
Low carbohydrate diets produce lower
insulin and higher growth hormone levels in the blood.
This hormonal milieu has been shown to aid in the
maintenance of bone and muscle mass and the promotion of
lipolysis (i.e. “fat burning”) in individuals who are
over weight. Low carbohydrate diets also delay the onset
of type 2 diabetes, improve the adverse effects of the
“metabolic syndrome” and ameliorate symptoms of
polycyctic ovary disease in women. [7, 8, 9, 10, 11]
In persons with normal kidney and liver
function, generous amounts of dietary protein have never
been proven to be harmful. [12]
The beneficial nutrients found in grain and
potato products are more easily derived from other,
lower-carbohydrate food sources such as non-starchy
vegetables, berries, and some fruits. There is absolutely
no dietary requirement for carbohydrate.
The historical record regarding human diets
is clear: Homo sapiens has evolved as a meat-eating
omnivore for the vast majority of its past. [13] The
introduction of large amounts of processed carbohydrates and trans-fats
into the diet is undeniably a very recent phenomenon.
Converging evidence from numerous sources strongly suggests
that proteins and naturally-occurring fats and oils are the
indispensable components of a healthy diet and should
constitute the majority of the foodstuffs consumed by the
general population. [14]
I strongly urge the Dietary Guidelines
Committee to abandon the low-fat, high carbohydrate
recommendations that are reflected in the current Food
Pyramid.
- Circulation. 1994 Jan; 89(1):
94-101
- Atherosclerosis. 2003 Nov; 171(1): 97-107
- Am J Clin Nutr. 2000 Jun; 71(6): 1455-61
- J Clin Invest. 1990 Jan; 85(1): 144-51
- J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 1991 Feb; 72(2):
432-7
- Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 1999 Apr;
19(4): 918-24
- Am J Med. 2002 Jul; 113(1): 30-6
- J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2003 Aug; 88(8):
3577-83
- N Engl J Med. 2003 May 22; 348(21):
2074-81
- Am J Clin Nutr. 2001 Jun; 73(6): 1019-26
- Curr Opin Lipidol. 1997 Feb; 8(1): 23-7
- Cleve Clin J Med. 2002 Nov; 69(11): 849,
853, 856-8 passim.
- Am J Clin Nutr. 2000 Mar; 71(3): 682-92
- Am J Med. 2002 Dec 30; 113 Suppl 9B:
47S-59S
Abstracts for the above references are
located in our Research &
Learning Section.
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