Official Diet Advice Is Having ‘Disastrous Health Consequences’ On Nation, Report Warns

Official guidelines that urge people to follow a low-fat diet are having “disastrous health consequences” on the nation, a new report has warned.
The report, by the National Obesity Forum (NOF) and the Public Health Collaboration, has told the public to “eat fat to get slim” and to avoid processed foods labelled as “lite” or “low-fat”. “Eating a diet rich in full fat dairy - such as cheese, milk and yoghurt - can actually lower the chance of obesity,” it adds.
“The most natural and nutritious foods available – meat, fish, eggs, dairy products, nuts, seeds, olive, avocados – all contain saturated fat. The continued demonisation of omnipresent natural fat drives people away from highly nourishing, wholesome and health promoting foods.” The authors of the report also argue that the science of food has been “corrupted by commercial influences”. But the report has been met by criticism from other scientists and Public Health England (PHE), who’ve said the suggestion we should be eating more fat is “irresponsible”.


a_namenko via Getty Images


The new report also suggests that people with Type 2 diabetes should eat a fat-rich diet, rather than one based on carbohydrates, while the entire population should avoid sugar. It advises people to stop counting calories and says the idea that exercise can help you “outrun a bad diet” is a myth. The authors have questioned the advice in the government’s official Eatwell Guide from PHE, claiming it was produced with a large number of people from the food and drink industry. PHE reportedly worked with representatives from the British Retail Consortium, the Food and Drink Federation, and the Institute of Grocery Distribution, whose members include Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Waitrose.  Professor David Haslam, chairman of the National Obesity Forum, told the Press Association: “As a clinician, treating patients all day every day, I quickly realised that guidelines...suggesting high carbohydrate, low-fat diets were the universal panacea, were deeply flawed.“Current efforts have failed - the proof being that obesity levels are higher than they have ever been, and show no chance of reducing despite the best efforts of Government and scientists.”

Dr Aseem Malhotra, consultant cardiologist and founding member of the Public Health Collaboration, said dietary guidelines promoting low-fat foods “is perhaps the biggest mistake in modern medical history resulting in devastating consequences for public health.” “Sadly this unhelpful advice continues to be perpetuated,” he said.
“The current Eatwell guide from Public Health England is in my view more like a metabolic timebomb than a dietary pattern conducive for good health. We must urgently change the message to the public to reverse obesity and Type 2 diabetes.“Eat fat to get slim, don’t fear fat, fat is your friend. It’s now truly time to bring back the fat.”


PHE

Professor Iain Broom, from Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen, said: “The continuation of a food policy recommending high carbohydrate, low-fat, low calorie intakes as ‘healthy eating’ is fatally flawed. “Our populations for almost 40 years, have been subjected to an uncontrolled global experiment that has gone drastically wrong.” But not everyone agrees with the latest report. The British Dietetic Association has issued a statement to say it “does not support recommendations made by the National Obesity Forum in regards to reversing obesity and type 2 diabetes”. “This advice is potentially dangerous with possible adverse side effects,” the statement says.  “Not only is there limited evidence around carbohydrate elimination for those with diabetes, but cutting out food groups could lead to nutrition problems including nutrient deficiencies and adversely affect their blood sugar control, particularly in individuals taking certain medications or insulin.
“With so much nutrition advice out there, it is unhelpful for the National Obesity Forum (NOF) to make such unsubstantiated claims. “Whilst the NOF paper claims to be evidence-based, the evidence used is limited and the paper is not peer reviewed. It is simply adding to the confusion of the public and could potentially be damaging to public health.” Professor John Wass, the Royal College of Physicians’ special adviser on obesity, added there was “good evidence that saturated fat increases cholesterol”. He added: “What is needed is a balanced diet, regular physical activity and a normal healthy weight. To quote selective studies risks misleading the public.”


http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/national-obesity-forum-report-full-fat-diet_uk_5742bad3e4b0ffced8626150?utm_hp_ref=uk

Most people with Type 2 diabetes should just lose weight, which generally means cutting down on calories and moving more. It's not rocket science.

When are people going to wake up and realize that our bodies are all different, weird, and dirty, and that no universal rule applies to all people?

THAT 'National obesity forum/Public health collaboration'  GROUP starts out on the right track, but then they themselves quickly lose the plot part way through...

Certainly people should be eating more natural foods, and avoiding processed foods and excessive additives as much as possible --  that's been known for years..

HOWEVER, then they start on encouraging people to eat as much  fatty food as they like !   Surely a one-way track to increasing cardiovascular disease, diabetes -- and it won't help long term healthy lean bodyweight targets.          


MUCH better, if they had encouraged healthier eating with a more rounded and healthy diet - not only less saturated fats, refined/'white' sugar, red meat, alcohol, caffeine -- but also reducing the 'starch'/complex carb's/white bread portions (which are still too high in many dietary guidelines..) down to only around 20% of calory intake..

I SEE wonky reports like this study, as yet another good example of how "scientists" from other fields start meddling in subjects that they are not always fully conversant with...        

I'LL side with the Nutrition & Diatetics experts a lot more often, rather than a bunch of misguided medico's -- who in reality actually did a lot less nutrition study at uni' than the Ag' and Home Ec' students do !

BY CUTTING OUT all "carbohydrates" --  as those dingbats in that idiotic "forum" seem to be encouraging -- they are basically saying that people should be avoiding fruit and vege's !!!

The very two basic food groups that should be the starting point for a broad and healthy nutrition-based diet, not avoided because some fools don't even understand basic physiology..

I am totally with wolf on this one.
Excellent post and I thought the same thing when I saw today's newspaper headlines. I actually did this

Btw wolf, a hell of a lot of people don't know that veg is a carbohydrate. I'm not even kidding!

scoff what the hell you want within a balanced diet...jsut dont over do any one group or over eat...simples....

if it moos...bite it
if it grows in the ground and is edible...bite it

and so on....

if its vaguely edible munch it....


just dont munch too much of it at once.....

Precisely Vic. You'd think most people would know that but they don't. They have to be told by the TV or by the newspaper, what they must eat or what they think is healthy.

eddie wrote:Btw wolf, a hell of a lot of people don't know that veg is a carbohydrate. I'm not even kidding!

During the Atkins craze, I packed lunches to bring to work, and usually brought an apple or bunch of grapes along. Got scolded by a coworker who said, "That's nothing but pure sugar!" And I was all, ... ...

Ben_Reilly wrote:

eddie wrote:Btw wolf, a hell of a lot of people don't know that veg is a carbohydrate. I'm not even kidding!

During the Atkins craze, I packed lunches to bring to work, and usually brought an apple or bunch of grapes along. Got scolded by a coworker who said, "That's nothing but pure sugar!" And I was all, ... ...

Well it is fructose.

Oooooh the Hidden dangers in all things that appear Sweeeeeeeeet .

I said that in Homer Simpson's voice

DOH!

Raggamuffin wrote:

Ben_Reilly wrote:

eddie wrote:Btw wolf, a hell of a lot of people don't know that veg is a carbohydrate. I'm not even kidding!

During the Atkins craze, I packed lunches to bring to work, and usually brought an apple or bunch of grapes along. Got scolded by a coworker who said, "That's nothing but pure sugar!" And I was all, ... ...

Well it is fructose.

And fiber, vitamins and minerals ...

And pips.

And anti oxidants...

Food starting changing in the 60's. Up until the 50's there was no processed food. My old mum was always telling me about how they ate butter, cream, cheese, beef etc, and nobody was fat. What they didn't have was all food loaded with sugar and that dreadful corn syrup, which has to be one of the worst things to put in your body, even worse than sugar.

We just didn't have the food variety years ago either. I remember coming home from school and filling up with toast, butter and marmite until we had our tea at 6pm and then that was it. Rarely had dessert and never had take aways. Plus we walked everywhere.

Ben_Reilly wrote:

Raggamuffin wrote:

Well it is fructose.

And fiber, vitamins and minerals ...

http://www.healthyfoodguide.com.au/articles/2008/april/diets-exposed-what-works-and-what-doesnt

THERE'S NOTHING wrong with fructose, in and of itself - the basic sugar that is in ALL fruit and vegetables, to some degree  -- though nowhere near as bad as the recent sugarphobe nitwits keep on suggesting...      
(also, ONE of the main problems  that I see with a couple of earlier studies that others are falling back on to support their "sugar free" campaigns, is that those studies were looking at the 'fructose' component in isomerized corn syrup,  rather than natural fructose as it occurs in fruit and vege's --  where the "isomerisation" process itself, is converting the fructose and glucose inti "isomers" or structurally different compounds..  SO THAT comparing those manufactured sugars to those in natural fruits and vege's, is practically an "apples and oranges" comparison.

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18596505-the-low-carb-fraud

AND THEN there's the other minor fact, that the quantities fed to animals in laboratory trials were much higher than those levels found in wverage diets, if people aren't gorging out on "fast" and sugary processed foods..

I HAVE YET to find one genuine study by any legitimate nutritionists/dieticians that goes anywhere near supporting the current 'no-sugars-whatsover' craze..        

http://nutritionfacts.org/2015/05/19/low-carb-diets-and-coronary-blood-flow/

EVERYTHING that I've seen so far, seems to be a fight back efforts by white sugar (sucrose, liquid glucose, maltose, isomerized corn syrup..) producers and brewing companies to mislead gullible customers, by attempting to make the more natural sugars (fructose, levulose, dextrose and naturally occurring glucose..) to be the "real culprits"  --  whereas the real problem is that processed food manufacturers  are loading up their products with excessive amounts of the more complex sugars, saturated fats, and sodium (as salt..), so much so that many people don't realise just how much..    

http://www.abc.net.au/health/features/stories/2012/08/30/3578541.htm


The woman (Sarah Wilson -- a former Aussie journo', now whose business is based in the US..) most responsible for pushing the current 'sugar free' pseudo-diets has zero qualifications or experience  in any nutrition or science field, but rather dreamt up totally impossible "explanations" on how removing "sugar" from her life supposedly "cured" her of dozens of health "problems"...   Just shows what some people -- and their publishers and publicists --  will do to sell their books..        

ONE BIG PROBLEM with her ongoing  lies -- she still allows vege's and grains (both containing natural sugars..) in her fallacious pseudo' diet suggestions, showing the actual denial within herself, about the mistruths and misdirections she keeps on peddling.

http://www.mamamia.com.au/you-know-what-dont-quit-sugar/

http://www.aww.com.au/latest-news/health/the-truth-behind-pete-evans-paleo-21920

And, here's some info' on the earlier studies that have fuelled the current debate,  (for those who want to see for themselves, the other side of the arguments..) :
:
http://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/apr/07/the-sugar-conspiracy-robert-lustig-john-yudkin

Too much fructose causes lived damage and bad for heart. .


Now flea keeper will probably pop up again with a barrage of insults and telling everyone how wrong/Stupid I am...!!!

Nothing from flea keeper yet...

Tommy Monk wrote:Nothing from flea keeper yet...

He's busy being obnoxious on another thread.