Why North Americans Are Overweight
25 Jan 2025
Dr. Richard Z. Cheng, Editor-in-Chief of the Orthomolecular Medicine News Service, reports that years ago hunters survived eating low-carbohydrate diets. Their food was rich in animal protein, along with berries and seeds. But often food was scarce, and hunters used any bodily fat reserves to survive. There was no becoming obese.
Now, food companies offer high-carbohydrate foods, with too much sugar and too many calories. Half of North Americans are overweight, with many people suffering diseases such as type 2 diabetes and its expensive medical complications. I interviewed Dr. Cheng to get his views on dietary measures that have a chance to reverse this disastrous situation.
He promotes nutritious diets that are low in carbs, ultra-processed foods, and (omega-6 rich) seed oils which are also ultra-processed. He also reminds people that plants are full of self-defensive toxins that may be harmful to humans, if eaten in excess. A low-carb diet includes all types of meat and fish. Add, eggs, hard and soft cheeses, leafy vegetables, fruits and seeds. Fruit is healthy, but only in moderation, given the high sugar content.
In contrast, a high-carb diet includes grains, bread, pasta, and root vegetables. Pizza, mac and cheese, muffins, fries, cakes, brownies and ice cream are high carb food. This diet of high-calorie and high-sugar foods leads to weight gain. Over time, following a high-carb diet is associated with chronic inflammation. Inflammation is a red flag that the body in not in good health. It increases the risk of big killers such as heart attack, hypertension, and stroke. Today 50 percent of Type 2 diabetes cases are due to excess pounds.
Diabetes doesn’t happen overnight. The bodily process of managing excess dietary sugar demands more insulin to control blood sugar levels. Over time, insulin becomes less effective. Finally, unless medical treatment begins, people develop type 2 diabetes. It’s the leading cause of blindness in those over age 60. It also why year after year more people are requiring renal dialysis, or kidney transplant, and falling victim to heart attack.
There is some good news. Dr. Cheng stressed that by changing to a low carb diet many medical metabolic functions would improve. For instance, our body’s cells contain what are called mitochondria that provide energy at the molecular level. It’s one reason why we have good days and bad ones. Cheng says that a low-carb diet enhances the performance of mitochondria. The diet also reduces inflammation in the brain and has been used to treat epilepsy and Parkinson’s disease.
Many factors start people on the path to obesity. A low carb diet is a first step to stop this pandemic that gets worse year after year. It must also be stressed again and again that home needs a bathroom scale that should be stepped on every day. Use of a calorie counter shows the huge number of calories in some foods. Finally people must use their two legs for exercise!
I have great respect for orthomolecular medicine. It was because of the research of Dr. Linus Pauling that, following a heart attack at 74 years of age, I declined cholesterol-lowering drugs with their many side effects and potential for medical complications. Rather, I’ve been taking 10,000 milligrams daily of vitamin C for 28 years. I’m convinced this is why I’m entering my 102nd year. I’ve followed a sound lifestyle with no weight gain, moderate exercise, and I avoid sugar like the plague.
My cardiologist was not amused. But for a quarter of a century, I have avoided the complications of synthetic drugs. Natural remedies like vitamin C have never killed anyone!
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