Fat in a Live Food Diet

The question of fat, and how much fat in the diet, is a very interesting question.  The fear of fat that was created by the Pritikin-type diet, has perhaps been a little bit damaging to people on live foods, because cutting out all the fats may create an omega-3 deficiency, which has been associated with depression, metabolic imbalances, anxiety, nervous system and skin disorders.  Obviously, excess fat has been associated with such societal problems as obesity, the epidemic of type-II diabetes, and heart disease.  This brings us to an interesting question of how much or how little fat should we eat.


Another aspect, which has not really been discussed at all in the live-food diet, is the issue of why is a live-food diet helpful in treating chronic obesity.  In a recent study of people who had been on live foods for at least two years, released by one of our students in the Master’s Program at the Tree of Life (Lenka, 2006), we have been able to see that a very high percentage of people on a live food diet have done exceptionally well in terms of not only weight loss, but coming to their optimal weight, which is really what we want to see happen.  In the survey with 525 people that was done by the Master’s student, the data showed an increase in those reporting that they “never overeat” from 7% before live foods to 34% while on live foods.  Those who reported overeating only once or twice per week increased from 35 to 54%.  There are reasons for this, and even more important is the fact that it happened.  Those who reported “no eating disorder” rose from 61% before live foods to 82% on a live food diet.  In terms of weight loss and weight changes, the percentage of people who reported “never dieting” rose from 44% before live foods, to 72% since transitioning to live foods.  Those who reported “dieting very often” dropped from 25% before starting live foods, to 12% on live foods.  82.5% of the people interviewed lost weight after switching to live foods.  75% of those not already at their ideal weight reported reaching it after transitioning to a live food diet.  56% reported regaining some of that weight, although most of them, 57% of them, only regained 25% of the weight they initially lost.  4% of the people actually gained weight after transitioning to live foods.  Overall, 82% of the people who were not at their ideal weight before live foods reported being closer to their optimum weight since transitioning to live foods.  So, there is something about a live food diet to recognize that is very helpful for people on the issues of fat.


One of the things that we haven’t really discussed in general is the issue of chronic obesity, and why does a live-food diet help.  Often chronic obesity results from resistance to leptin, an auto-regulatory, fat-derived hormone, also known as an adipokine.  The major cause of leptin resistance appears to be a chronic, low-grade inflammation that seems to be association with obesity.  This disease cycle: weight gain, inflammation, leptin resistance, increasing weight gain and obesity, can be broken by a live-food diet because a live-food diet is primarily an anti-inflammatory diet.  In a one-month study we had with people on live foods who were grossly overweight and obese, their anti-inflammatory enzymes dropped to within normal limits in that one month, which was quite a statement.  So, we need to appreciate the power of a live-foods diet to decrease systemic inflammation.  We will go a little further to understand the cycle, and then use this understanding as a foundation to develop an approach to live foods.


First, let us understand that fat cells produce hormones, adipokines.  This tells us that fat is a biologically active tissue.  Through the actions of the adipokines, excess fat by itself can cause, as we know, high blood pressure, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, stroke, and osteo-arthritis.  By producing the adipokines, the body is able to regulate its fat, because the adipokines can increase or decrease appetite and metabolic rate, making weight control easier or harder.  Leptin are the very first adipokines that we’ve heard about, they are a feedback system to the brain about the body’s fat stores.  When humans are eating too much fat and are obese, the increase in the body fat sets off increased leptin synthesis.  The increased leptins suppress appetite and stimulate fat burning, and help to restore normal.  The more body fat, the higher the circling level of leptins.  Obesity results from a failure of leptin signaling, which we now cause leptin resistance, and is associated with insulin resistance.  Again, the major cause of leptin resistance appears to chronic inflammation.  Inflammation is a biochemical state induced in the body through the actions of cytokines, prostenoids, kinins, and other inflammatory molecules.  Obesity itself adds to the inflammation because the fat tissue, again which is a living tissue, produces inflammatory cytokinenes like TNA-a, and interleukin-6.   These further worsen the inflammation.


In this cycle of inflammation that causes leptin resistance, there are blocking molecules calls SOCS: Suppressors of Cytokine Signaling.  The body tries to limit the damage produced by the inflammatory response by giving this counter response of producing SOCS-1 and SOCS-3.  Unfortunately, these interfere with the cell’s ability to respond to leptin. The SOCS-3 blocks the response to insulin, and is one of the causes of insulin resistance.  In order to turn off the production of SOCS’s, which causes leptin resistance and insulin resistance once one has to turn off the inflammation.


The research shows that inflammation is promoted by dietary factors that include trans-fatty acids, saturated fat, a high omega-6 to omega-3 ratio, as well as refined carbohydrates and a lack of dietary fiber.  Clearly, a properly regulated live-food diet gives you just a perfect balance for decreasing inflammation.  The best diet for combating inflammation is a live-food diet.  This is particularly so for a life food diet high in omega-three fats, fiber, poly-phenols, carotenoids, isothiacyanides (which you are going to get in your greens), and sulfides.  A diet low in saturated and omega-6 fats, a low glycemic diet is important because in some way, sugar also stimulates inflammation.


Another thing to consider before we even try to answer these questions is the effect of our diet on fatty acids, hormones, and prostaglandin production.  Prostaglandins are extremely important, and gives us an idea of the importance of omega-3’s.  The good prostaglandins, which are PG-1 and PG-3, increase serotonin production, create a sense of wellbeing and help us get beyond depression, are anti-inflammatory, inhibit platelet clumping, support the immune system, and stimulate hormones for the adrenal, thyroid, and pituitary, including growth hormones, and inhibit insulin release.  The negative prostaglandins (PG-2) activate arachadonic acid, which is inflammatory. PG-2 causes pain, inflammation, constipation, dry skin, depression, platelet clumping, skin rashes, and allergies. There are also symptoms which are typical of an omega-3 deficiency. This is because you need a certain amount of omega-6 to create GLA.  GLA sources include primrose oil, currant oil, borage oil, hemp oil (which is the third-highest in GLA), and spirulina.  The GLA sources then can move in either of two directions: either they make PG 1 and PG-3, or the bad prostaglandins, PG-2.  We tend to make PG-2, if we are deficient in EPA (a long chain Omega-3 fatty acid), to block the cycle.  The EPA and glucagons block the conversion of the GLA to the bad prostaglandins, because they produce d-5-desaturase.  d-5-desaturase  also is activated by a high vegetable protein diet or a high glycemic diet.  A high protein or high-glycemic (high sugar) diet creates fat storage and weight gain and activates insulin production which creates a conversion to PG-2.  The PG-1 and PG-3 are activated by a stable and low blood sugar, a low-glycemic diet, and a 20-30% protein diet.  What protects us against these inflammatory prostaglandins, which are connected to leptin blockage, are the omega-3 fatty acids.


"Research for Israel has show in rats that when there was higher AA there is more depression, when given higher O3 the amount of AA diminished and the depression was ameliorated, the point being again the higher ratio of 3 to 6 creates less AA in the brain and therefore less depression"


With this understanding, we now can with some intelligence begin to answer the questions about the role of fats in the live food diet.  The first thing we need to think about is that everybody is different, and biochemical individuality does play a role in this.  This is most seen with the fast oxidizers needing a higher amount of fat in their diet to produce energy.  From an Ayurvedic point of view, the vata people, who get the most neurologically deranged, also need a higher amount of fat and oil in their diet.  That does make a difference.  Obviously, in cold weather, a little bit higher fatty diet does make a difference as a buffer system, but it doesn’t do anything to really deal with any some of our other issues that we were talking about.  As far as we are concerned, it is a lot easier to just wear more heavy clothing to keep yourself warm, and put a little cayenne in your gloves and in your socks—which is not a bad idea for England anyway.


Depression has been linked to low cholesterol.  A person with cholesterol around 130 or less has a significantly higher rate of depression.  Depression has also been linked to a deficiency in DHA, which is a long-chain omega-3, particularly post-partum depression.  Manic depression has also been linked to a low level of EPA (a long chain Omega-3).  When we put those together, we get a real clarity that we need a very high ratio of omega-3’s to omega 6’s but eating foods high in omega-3’s.  Your high omega-3 foods are your flax seed and hemp seed.  Flax seed has a certain advantage, if you ground the flax that day and have it fresh it has the lignands in it (I don’t really recommend it from the oil because the oil can go rancid). Along with this I like to use saturated fat like coconut oil because it increases the conversion of short chain omega-3 to long chain omega-3 from 1-3% conversion up to 10% conversion, depending on the research studies.  A fast oxidizer may need a combination of 3 tablespoon of ground flax seeds, twice a day with one tablespoon of coconut oil.  This combination should give abundant Omega-3’s.  There is also an herb called purslane, which we grow and serve at the Tree of Life, which has both the long-chain omega-3, EPA, and DHA.  The research also shows that the E3-Live has both DHA and EPA in it (which doesn’t mean that the other blue-green algaes don’t have it, but we know that E3 Live does).  It has been shown that when people take E3 Live, it increases the amount of DHA and EPA in the system.  That is the important consideration.


The Pritikin diet, the McDougal diet, the Ornish diet, etc, with the conclusion that 10% calories from fat is optimal, ignores two things.


What is this fat that they are talking about and is the fat is raw of cooked?


I think that live fooders can go a little bit higher than that because what we see with the Pritikin diet is there is depression and there are some mental problems which may occur, because you need the long-chain omega-3’s to make the conversions.  What we don’t need—and I believe a lot of their discussion was about this—is a lot of the omega-6’s, the cooked fats, and the trans-fatty acids.  Those aren’t really good for us.  But eating healthy fats doesn’t seem to be much of a problem.


Now, 50% of calories from fat are a little high.  Nuts & seeds are high protein foods, but they’re actually higher in fats.  They are on the average close to 70-80% fats, but they are still high protein foods which is actually really good for fast oxidizers.  Some people can eat a fair amount of nuts and seeds and do quite well.  Gabriel here, as a slow oxidizer, has a minimal amount of nuts and seeds, which means a few nuts and seeds on a salad, and goes with three tablespoons flax ground and one tablespoon of coconut oil, at least once a day, usually at breakfast.  I only eat two meals per day, and just a few nuts and seeds.  Too much fat really doesn’t do well for my constitutional type because it actually blocks the energy production of a slow oxidizer, but it actually stimulates the energy production of a fast energizer.


Between 20-70 grams of protein range is a safe range.  Gabriel gets between 20 and 30g of protein a day, and that seems totally sufficient.  For a fast oxidizer, they may need more.  For a pregnant woman, a minimum of 70g of protein per day is suggested.  That’s not the weight of nuts; that’s the grams of protein.  For example, if you have 10 grams of nuts, you’re getting, let’s say, 2.5 grams of protein.  Often, we go to spirulina to supplement protein needs.


Anytime you are overeating it is never going to be good.  Overeating fats, proteins, or anything, is never going to be to your benefit.  However, people who are fast oxidizers are going to do better on fats and proteins like nuts and seeds than a slow oxidizer.  If you overeat anything, ultimately it will not be good for your mental, emotional, spiritual health.  If you undereat, however, and don’t get enough omega-3’s, we are looking at emotional, mental, and spiritual changes. Depression and anxiety is what we often see, and then a disordering of the nervous system.


You need a certain amount of the fatty acids also for the phosphorous for the brain.  For that, bee pollen is very good.  It is 15% lecithin, and it is not soy lecithin—it is bee pollen lecithin.  That is very good for brain function and focus.  Besides the flax, coconut oil, nuts, seeds, olives & avocado, my other source of fat is bee pollen.


The idea of eating fat to slow the uptake of fruit sugar is, I believe, a valid approach because the glycemic index has to do with how fast sugar gets into the system.  Nevertheless, it doesn’t deal with the fact that a high-sugar diet is still not good for you.  A high-sugar diet stimulates inflammation, which causes the leptin resistance and insulin resistance, potentially bringing us into Syndrome X, or “metabolic syndrome.”  40 million people in the U.S. have this syndrome, which is high blood pressure, hypertension, diabetes, obesity, and inability to lose weight.  We have to be careful how far we go, and sugar definitely still is a danger, but whether it comes slow or fast makes a difference if you have hypoglycemia, and you won’t get quite so many wide swings in your blood sugar.  You still get the sugar though, which stimulates candida and fungus growth, and is connected to cancer as well, because cancer cells need 10 to 50 times more sugar intake for them to function at their most pathogenic, treacherous level.


In this diet, I strongly want to emphasize the importance of EPA and DHA and the conversion factor, and one needs to make a concerted effort to take 3-6 tablespoons of ground flax and 1-2 tablespoons at the same time of the coconut oil to enhance the conversion, depending on the studies up to 10%, depending on the studies.  I haven’t seen anybody who has had difficulties with this amount.  I am not sure they can’t make all the EPA and DHA they need from that, but if they can’t, then you can use your DHA from golden algae, a supplement that is extremely high.  One capsule of that is more than anybody needs, although I recommend two per day for a pregnant woman.  This DHA is totally vegan.  The EPA is harder to get, but the blue-green algae, the E3-Live, and purslane have a fair amount of EPA.


Italians live a long time because of the olive oil, which seems to be really good for the heart and it has some really good anti-oxidant qualities.  Sesame seed oil also has antioxidant qualities.  Again, though, we have to be careful about the omega-3 versus omega-6’s.  We want to emphasize the omega-3’s, the other ones being more additives for your salad dressing, and so forth.  A certain limited amount of the omega-6 rich foods is very healthy.  The Mediterranean diet, which has a big emphasis on that, bears that out in results in terms of protecting against heart disease and cancer.


I think the most important thing is to not get caught in the fear and polarities that if you don’t do 10% (fat), because 10% for a cooked person eating junk food is a very different thing from healthy raw oils.  More like 20% of raw oils and fats seem safe.  People have been living on nuts and seeds for thousands of years and have done well.  Just again, we don’t want to go into excess because it is only 20-30% protein and 70-80% fat.  Once we understand all those pieces, then we can make appropriate choices.  Most people will begin to figure out how they feel.  Gabriel knows that he doesn’t feel really good eating a lot of nuts and seeds and therefore doesn’t do it.  Other people feel better.  The constitutions play important roles.  A lot of people in the live-food movement that we have seen have gotten into pathological states because they have created omega-3 deficiencies by trying to do a low-fat diet.  That seems to be a classic error on the live-food diet, particularly for pregnant women.  This seems to be reversible by the suggestions that have been made.


At the Tree of Life, we try to give people choices by putting the nuts and seeds out, and though we prepare seed pates in tasty ways, the fast oxidizers know they can have a lot, and we tell the slow oxidizers to have half as much.  It is not by calories, though; we do it by volume on the plate.


The main thing is the proper ratio of fats is extremely important for a successful live-food diet.  When we apply the principles of biochemical individuality, which has been scientifically proven for the last 70 years, and for the last 3000 years in the Ayurvedic diet, and we apply live fats, which are vastly different from cooked fats, we get a considerably different result from the results of a cooked and trans fatty acid fat diet.  Therefore, we can go to a higher fat intake without causing any particular problems.  The interesting evidence of this is that while the Eskimos were eating raw blubber they never had any heart disease. When they changed their diet to cooked blubber because of westerners coming in, they began to get vast amounts of heart disease, high blood pressure, and cancer.  So, there is a very big difference in the kind of fats we eat, not just about omega-3, but if it is raw or cooked.  Raw fats are immeasurably safer and better for us.