Carbsane AKA Evelyn Kocur gets mentioned in dispatches.

Yesterday we received this anonymous (the negative posters always are) comment on the '20-stone mum lost half her body weight joins the low carbers' post.

"Looks like the low carb insulin hypothesis is about to be relegated to the dustbin of history Eddie. Garry Taubes's NuSi study backed by millions of dollars of cash has just disproved his and Atkins own theories. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot! You called Carbsane a nutter but what she's been saying for years has just been validated by the NuSi study created by Taubes and Attia. Waiting for Graham to announce this result seeing as he denies been a cherry picker."

I have not read the study referred to, but I will. Clearly this person is a Carbsane fan. Some background on Carbsane, who is arguably the worlds leading expert on what does not work, but offers absolutely nothing of use to people looking to control their diabetes or get to a safe weight.

For those residing in the UK and have never heard of the Carbsane blog, run by a morbidly obese woman called Evelyn Kocur, let me bring you up to speed. She has spent years rubbishing lowcarb and paleo. Working with a small bunch of kneecap suckers, her main target is the American blogger Jimmy Moore. Evelyn had dedicated her life to stalking Jimmy 24/7. Day after day, week after week, she has spent a huge amount of time writing about Jimmy. To say she is obsessed is an understatement, check her out. Some time ago, she went onto  Amazon giving the world the benefit of her acumen. The big problem for Evie is while others have lost weight, she stays obese and clearly very bitter.

She must know, she would have some credibility if she could get to a safe weight, but she can’t, and probably never will. The big question for me is, if she has all this knowledge, why can’t she get to a safe weight, let’s face it, loosing weight is hardly rocket science. It’s my opinion the problem for Evie is between her ears. So many times in life I have met a well educated, on first impression, impressive individual, but closer observation reveals there is not much going on up-stairs (and a long time MD agrees with me). She can talk the talk, but cannot walk the walk. But, all is not lost, a Doctor contacted Carbsane and offered her help. Check out this post from Dr. Bill Wilson, a small town family practice doctor, working in Northern Minnesota for more than 30 years, with a long standing interest in neuroscience.

"After spending a lot of time in the world of low carb and Paleo, I can’t imagine how I missed her. The “her” is an anonymous blogger who calls herself CarbSane. The other day I was preparing to write an Amazon review on Jimmy Moore’s excellent new book “Cholesterol Clarity—What the HDL is Wrong With My Numbers?” The review is still in the works but trust me, I will give the book five stars. I was perusing some of the other reviews when I came across the review written by CarbSane. She not only trashed the book, but also she managed to literally chew Jimmy up and spit him out! She then went on to trash many people who contributed to the book including Gary Taubes, Mark Sisson, Dr. Fred Pescatore, Dr. William Davis and a long list of other people who I respect. She rated the book 2 stars but then went on to say it really deserved a 1 star. Out of 36 reviews there were only three that weren’t 4 or 5 stars so CarbSane’s review really stuck out like a sore thumb.

I decided to do a little research on CarbSane. I visited her web site and read through some of her ranting and rambling blog posts. The pattern was the same—if someone from the low carb or Paleo world pokes their head out of a foxhole, she blasts them with both barrels. The purpose of this blog post isn’t to challenge CarbSane’s positions on diet and health because a long list of people smarter than me has already done so. What caught my attention was CarbSane herself. 

I became fascinated with her because I immediately recognized that she fits the pattern of someone with a treatable disease and as a practicing physician with over 35 years of experience, this is what I do. I try to figure out what is wrong with people—in other words I diagnose them and then give them advice on how to fix the problem.

CarbSane, the good news is that there is hope for you. You have a treatable disease and I have a great deal of experience managing complex patients like yourself. In the past you tried various diets in an attempt to lose weight and things stalled out and you didn’t feel good or lose more weight. That’s because you don’t understand the disease that is destroying your health and quality of life. Contact me and I will guide your treatment protocol at no cost."

So, there you have it folks. Did the font of all dietary knowledge call the good Doctor, will we soon be seeing a slim-line Evie, does she want help? My money is on her making Dr. Bill Wilson a target for the Carbsane treatment. It is my opinion Kocur is one wave short of a shipwreck! If you have the time or suffer from insomnia, check her out on the Jimmy Moore podcast. She explains how the only time she lost a shed load of weight, was by low carbing, but alas she piled it back on, because she started using "cheats" and could not keep away from Lindt chocolates.

So many times along this low carb journey, I have heard people say it can't be done or it does not work. When what they mean is I can't do it.

Eddie

Link to the full Dr. Bill Wilson post here.  Post edit. I checked the Bill Wilson link twice today and it worked. Since making this post it now appears to be broken or the entire post removed from Bill's blog. As I often say, the Lard works in mysterious ways.

Link to the Carbsane Jimmy Moore podcast here.

Chocolate Almond Torte : Low Carb and Sugar-Free

Don't you just love recipes with few ingredients? Well I do, and when I saw this Chocolate Almond Torte has just 6 ingredients ... I thought it one to share!

"Brenda at 'Sugar-Free Mom' blog writes ... this cake is the cake of all cakes. It’s a perfect cake for when time is a bit rushed and you really want to make something special. It’s the perfect cake for any special occasion. Perfect for the holidays, birthdays, or just some friends coming over for the weekend.

Brenda is a woman on a mission to reduce and eliminate added, processed sugars in her families lives. She has been successfully maintaining a 50 pound weight loss for the last 8 years since her third child was born. Her experience is her own and she shares what she has learned."

Ingredients:

2 sticks butter, (1 cup) unsalted, cut into pieces
8 ounces 85% dark chocolate, chopped
6 large eggs, separated
3/4 cup Swerve sweetener
1 tsp chocolate liqid stevia
1/2 cup almond butter, no sugar added

Carbohydrates: 5.4g per serving 
Fiber: 2.3g
Net Carbs: 3.1g

For more details about this lovely low carb cake do go over to Brenda's blog and see her 'Optional topping ideas' and the full instructions here

Might also be nice for a Mother's Day celebration, which in the USA is May 8th.

All the best Jan

End of Guidelines - a parody of End of the Line

End of Guidelines - a parody of the Traveling Wilburys classic song, End of the Line. Chronic disease state guidelines (blood pressure/lipids/glucose/bone density) do not provide clinicians with enough balanced information to do shared decision-making. This is a problem that needs to be fixed ASAP.

Graham

20-stone mum lost HALF her body weight joins the low carbers.

Some extracts from the story linked below.

"A grandmother who became so embarrassed by her size that she became a social recluse has lost HALF of her body weight after being determined to attend her goddaughter’s wedding.

Delpha Pope, 43, from Ashford, Kent reached a whopping 20 stone and dress size 30 after years of mindlessly munching the same size portions as her hubby.

Her typical diet consisted of a gourmet coffee and pastry for breakfast, calorie-laden pre-packaged sandwiches for lunch as well as lots of bread, biscuits, cake, and a carb-heavy dinners - like lasagne.

Now she avoids carbs, eats lots of vegetables including mushrooms, tomatoes and courgettes, has lean chicken and steak and has swapped mash for sweet potatoes."

Hat tip to this amazing Woman, what she has done takes real effort and dedication, not only does she look fantastic, if she stays on the plan, I am convinced she will put many active years on her life.

Read the full story here.

Eddie

Lamb stew with artichokes, cannellini beans and sunsoaked tomatoes

This recipe is from Tamsin Burnett-Hall ... her recipe's are always creative and although she's a specialist in healthy eating, she's not adverse to decadent treats too! (Sshhh don't tell anyone!)

She is an author of cookbooks and long-time contributor to Sainsbury's magazine, which is where I saw this recipe idea. It uses cannellini beans, sunsoaked tomatoes and artichoke antipasto, what a great mix! This whole dish has a carb count of 14.3 g carb per serving, so if it suits your menu plans why not give it a try? Who said stews were only for the winter ... 

Ingredients:
Serves Six

2 tbsp olive oil
900g boneless lamb shoulder, cut into 4cm cubes
1 large onion, sliced
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
125ml white wine
1 tbsp tomato purée
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
300ml hot vegetable stock
A sprig of fresh rosemary
400g tin cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
Half a 290g tub sunsoaked tomatoes, drained
280g jar artichoke antipasto, drained
2 tbsp parsley, chopped, to garnish

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 150°C/gas mark 2. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large frying pan over a high heat. Brown the lamb in batches until each piece is well coloured. Remove the lamb from the pan as it is done and set aside.
2. Add the remaining oil to the frying pan and fry the onion for 3-4 minutes until beginning to caramelise. Add the garlic and continue to fry for a minute. Pour over the white wine and allow it to reduce by two-thirds, so the liquid has almost disappeared.

3. Transfer the lamb, onions, garlic and reduced wine into a 2-litre casserole dish. Stir through the tomato purée, vinegar and hot stock. Add the rosemary sprig and season generously. Cover and cook in the oven for 2 hours.
4. Remove the lid and stir through the cannellini beans. Replace the lid and cook for another 15 minutes. Remove the stew from the oven and allow to cool completely. Discard the rosemary sprig.
5. When ready to serve, stir through the sun-soaked tomatoes and artichokes until they’re heated through and serve with the chopped parsley.

Each serving provides:
14.3g carbohydrate 3.2g fibre 30.2g protein

choice of low carb berries and double (heavy) cream for dessert

Strawberries 6 grams. Blackberries 5.1 grams. Raspberries 4.6 grams.

Carbs per 100 grams.

 Happy Eating

 All the best Jan

Paediatricians have told their college to stop taking money from infant formula milk manufacturers

Paediatricians have told their college to stop taking money from infant formula milk manufacturers in a vote at the college’s annual general meeting (AGM).

Some 66 delegates at the AGM of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) voted in favour of a motion that urged it to “decline any commercial transactions or any other kind of funding or support” from all companies that market breast milk substitutes. Some 53 delegates voted against the motion.1

The motion is not binding, however, and in a statement college president Neena Modi said that the “implications of the vote” would be considered at the next council meeting in July. A spokesperson for the college said that it was too early to say what the next steps would be.

Modisaid, “Breastfeeding gives children the beststart to lifelong health. The RCPCH considers the promotion of formula over breastfeeding in healthy infantsto be unacceptable. The RCPCH also recognises the importance of the availability of safe alternatives to breast feeding and specialised products for preterm and sick infants.”

The motion, proposed by Charlotte Wright, professor of community child health at the University of Glasgow, stated that, while the college had progressively distanced itself from formula manufacturers over the years, it still derived income from trade stands at conferences.

Wright said that the details of any ban on the college receiving income from formula manufacturers would still have to be worked out. She said that the proposal was not a blanket ban on the college having commercial links with any organisation with tiesto breast milk manufacturers. For example, the college might eventually decide that it can no longer work with any organisation deriving more than 10 or 20% of its income from manufacturers.

“It’s the explicit engagement that’s the problem,” she said. A junior doctor told the AGM that he was horrified to see that Nestle had a stand at a conference. “A lot of people were moved by that,” she said.

“One of the college’s arguments is that it’s important for them to engage with companies because they make life saving milks for babies. That argument misses the distinction between genuine collaborative research and taking bribes,” she said.

Wright said that she hoped that the college’s council would accept the decision but it might decide to ballot all members. Wright and others proposing the motion offered to present their arguments to the council in July.

The motion highlighted the World Health Organisation and Unicef code on the marketing of breast milk substitutes, which stresses the need for health workers to be independent of promotional influences, such as sponsorship of professional associations.2

Patti Rundall, policy director of the campaign group Baby Milk Action, said that she was “thrilled” with the news of the vote.

“I hope the council will follow through and hear the message from members,” she said. “We need independent voices and we need the RCPCH to carry on doing what it has always done, which is speak out about what is bad for infant health. If it’s compromised it will be bad news for child health, not just in the UK but globally.”

http://www.babymilkaction.org/

Graham

Good Habits Linked to a Long Life (Backed by Science)

Meet Alina Petre who is a registered dietitian with an expertise in sport nutrition. She completed her nutrition undergrad in Canada, received her Master’s degree in the U.K. and currently calls the Netherlands home.

On the Authority Nutrition site she has recently written about 13 Habits Linked to a Long Life (Backed by Science) which may be of interest to you...

"Many people think life expectancy is largely determined by genetics.
However, it seems that genes play a much smaller role than originally believed.
Instead, environmental factors like diet and lifestyle are thought to be the key determinants.

Here are 13 things you can do to increase the chances of seeing your 100th birthday.

1. Avoid Overeating:
The link between calorie intake and longevity currently generates a lot of interest.

Bottom Line: Limiting your calories may help you live longer and protect against disease. However, more research is needed in humans.

2. Eat Some Nuts:

Nuts are nutritional powerhouses.

Bottom Line: Adding some nuts to your daily food intake may keep you healthy and help you live longer.

3. Use The Spice Turmeric:
When it comes to anti-aging properties, turmeric is undoubtedly the most popular spice. This is because it contains a potent bio-active compound called curcumin.

Bottom Line: Curcumin, the main bio-active compound in turmeric, has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Some animal studies suggest that it can increase lifespan.

4. Eat Plenty of Healthy Plant Foods:
Consuming a wide variety of plant foods, such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, whole grains and beans, may decrease disease risk and promote longevity.
For example, many studies link the Mediterranean diet to a lower risk of premature death. It’s also been linked to a reduced risk of cancer, metabolic syndrome, heart disease, depression and brain deterioration.

Bottom Line: Eating plenty of plant foods is likely to help you live longer and remain free of various common diseases.

5. Exercise and Be Physically Active:
It should come as no surprise that staying physically active can keep you healthy and add years to your life. The minimum amount needed to reap the benefits, such as an additional 3 years of life, may be as little as 15 minutes per day.

Bottom Line: Exercising more than 150 minutes per week is best, but even small amounts of physical activity can benefit health and longevity.

6. Don’t Smoke:
Smoking is strongly linked to disease and early death.

Bottom Line: Putting out your cigarette can significantly prolong your life. It’s never too late to reap the benefits of quitting smoking.

7. Keep Your Alcohol Intake Moderate:
Heavy alcohol consumption is linked to liver, heart and pancreatic disease, as well as an overall increased risk of early death.
However, moderate consumption is associated with a reduced likelihood of several diseases, as well as a 17–18% decrease in the risk of premature death.
Wine is thought to be particularly beneficial due to its high content of polyphenol antioxidants.

Bottom Line: If you drink alcohol, maintaining a moderate intake may help prevent disease and prolong your life. Wine may be particularly beneficial.

8. Prioritize Your Happiness:

Feeling happy can significantly increase your longevity.

In fact, happier individuals had a 3.7% reduction in early death over a 5-year study period.

9. Avoid Chronic Stress and Anxiety:
Anxiety and stress may significantly decrease your lifespan.

Bottom Line: Finding ways to reduce your anxiety and stress levels should be seen as a long-term investment in your lifespan. Also, having an optimistic outlook on life can be beneficial.

10. Nurture Your Social Circle:
Researchers report that maintaining healthy social networks can help you live up to 50% longer.

Bottom Line: Nurturing close relationships may result in decreased stress levels, improved immunity and an extended lifespan.

11. Increase Your Conscientiousness:
Conscientiousness refers to a person’s ability to be self-disciplined, organized, efficient and goal-oriented.

Bottom Line: Being conscientious is associated with a longer lifespan and fewer health problems in old age.

12. Drink Coffee or Tea:

Both coffee and tea are linked to a decreased risk of chronic disease.

Bottom Line: Moderate consumption of tea and coffee may be beneficial for healthy aging and longevity.

13. Develop a Good Sleeping Pattern:

Sleep is crucial for regulating cell function and helping your body heal.

A recent study reports that longevity is likely linked to regular sleeping patterns, such as going to bed and waking up around the same time each day.

Sleep duration also seems to be a factor, with both too little and too much sleep being harmful.

Bottom Line: Developing a sleep routine that includes 7–8 hours of sleep each night may help you live longer.

Take Home Message:
Longevity is partly determined by genetics. However, a large part of how long you live remains within your control.

If you want to reach old age, then make sure to give these tips a try."

Alina's full article with all information / research links is here

We try and bring a variety of articles, studies etc. plus recent news/views and recipe ideas to this blog, we hope something for everyone to read and enjoy.

Please note, not all may be suitable for you.

If you may have any food allergies, or underlying health issues these must always be taken into account. If you are a diabetic and not sure how certain foods may affect your blood sugars, test is best, i.e. use your meter.

All the best Jan

Google handed NHS patients' files without permission: Up to 1.6million records - including names and medical history!

Up to 1.6 million patients have had their private medical files passed on to Google without their permission, it was revealed today

The internet giant was given the data by one of the largest NHS trusts to develop an app to monitor possible kidney failure.

The encrypted information includes the names and medical histories of every patient who had stayed in hospital overnight or attended A&E in the past five years.

None of the patients was told beforehand and the revelation has exposed the ease with which private companies can obtain highly sensitive medical information without consent.

The data given to the internet giant would include patients' complete medical histories, including whether they had been diagnosed with HIV, depression, suffered from drug or alcohol addiction, or had an abortion.

But neither Google nor the Royal Free could explain why the data of so many patients was needed for the software to be developed.

More on this latest story here.

Eddie

Dr David Unwin: Low carb GP practice finalist in BMJ awards this week

Taken from this weeks British Medical Journal: we are finalists in the diabetes team of the year category!
Beating obesity and diabetes

'The scale of the twin epidemics of obesity and type 2 diabetes is daunting. “Back in 2012 there was a tendency to see it as hopeless,” says David Unwin, senior partner at the Norwood Surgery in Southport. “I think we were a little demoralised. We were particularly concerned about younger patients, who we felt were at the greatest risk of the long term effects of diabetes. So we trialled the idea of a more collaborative approach, identifying patients’ personal health goals and linking them with a low carbohydrate diet.”

A pilot was launched in January 2013 and 68 patients volunteered to join it. The plan involved group work that included family members, underpinned by a positive, solution focused psychological model to improve motivation to adopt a low carbohydrate diet. The first results showed significant reductions in haemoglobin A1c, weight, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels, with several patients coming off medication altogether. So the approach was broadened to the whole practice.

“What has really surprised us is how enthusiastic the patients have been, particularly in joining in with our regular group meetings which include interested family members,” Unwin says. “The other surprise was how well tolerated the low carb diet was. Three years later eight members of the team are on the diet with our patients.”

As a practice Norwood Surgery now spends £45 000 (€57 000; $64 000) a year less on drugs for diabetes than is average in the area. Obesity prevalence dropped from 9.4% to 7.5%, and blood glucose levels have been reduced by 10%.'

Fingers crossed for the ceremony on Thursday night please folks -you helped me start this!!

BMJ fianlists here: http://thebmjawards.bmj.com/64277

Graham

Thank you Kath.

"Lovely recipe - thank you Jan! I still marvel at how wonderful your website is! I must grab a tea or coffee with you, Eddie and Graham one day and shake your hand! What a wonderful, refreshing and delightful website this is! Thank you so much for the time you spend posting and researching and helping so many, Kath xxx"

The above came in as a comment today on the latest recipe post Jan has posted, obviously that sort of praise keeps us motivated. Of course I am sure not everyone would agree with Kath, especially the British Dietetic Association. Nor would the management of the self proclaimed "largest diabetes forum in Europe" diabetes.co.uk. The irony is we only started this blog, because we had all been banned from the aforementioned forum, and wanted a way of spreading the low carb good news to diabetics.

The greatest irony of all, is the fact that after the forum banned so many low carbers over the years, they have in recent times, been heavily promoting low carb, when the management could see some mileage in it for themselves. We call that forum, the forum of flog, because they make money from the members by selling products, and selling members information to big pharma companies for trials, as evidenced below.

So to conclude, thank you so much Kath for your kind words. Here's to getting to two million page views on this blog. Here's to many more great recipes and general interest posts (Jan's department) health related information and latest news stories (Graham's department) and general tomfoolery and winding up the spreaders of misinformation and exploiters (my department).

As you can see people from all over the world visit our blog.

A screen shot taken this afternoon of the last 24 hours. 

Please note we only get data on the top ten countries. 

Eddie

"One of the ways the website makes money is by charging to put organisations such as pharmaceutical companies doing medical trials in touch with forum members who have diabetes."

Forum owner Mr. Arjun Panesar here.

Eddie

Sweet and Salt-Cured Salmon with Scrambled Eggs and Chives

Meet Swedish chef Birgitta Höglund who is featured on Diet Doctor site and also has a popular low carb/Paleo recipe blog, with more delicious recipes.

She writes ... "Occasionally, you just want to have something quick and simple. However, this doesn’t mean you have to skimp on nutrition and flavor, which makes scrambled eggs with a side of cured salmon a great choice for a healthy light meal. The fat and protein from the fish and eggs will keep you satiated and happy for a long time."

Sounds good to me, and looks good to, doesn't it ...

Ingredients
1 serving
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons butter
2 fl. oz. (50 ml) heavy whipping cream
1 tablespoon chives, chopped
1–3 slices of cured salmon

Salt and pepper

Recipe instructions can be seen at Diet Doctor site here

Cured salmon is raw salmon that has been cured (preserved) by some combination of fermentation, pickling, or smoking before it is eaten. Recipes exist from many cultures stretching from the people of early to modern Scandinavia to the Native Americans.

The process of curing fish has been around for a significant amount of time as it has been used as a way to preserve fish from spoiling. The process usually involves an abundance of salt or sugar even sometimes both. A dry rub is mixed together using salt/sugar and an assortment of desired herbs. This is rubbed onto the surface of the salmon, which is then put aside for a number of hours or days. The salt/sugar "cooks" the fish by drawing a large amount of liquid out and replacing it with salt/sugar mixture. At the end of the process the result is cured salmon.

Details about cured salmon from here

Bon Appetit

All the best Jan

What really happens when you mix medications?

Stanford big data techno-optimist and internist Russ Altman shows us how the power of machine learning in drug development is helping us understand adverse medication effects.

Graham

Maybe I ought to get out more.

Saw this yesterday and thought to myself, do they mean me. LOL 

Seriously, if I had spent the time I spend on the internet reading newspapers and blogging etc. exercising or running, I would be giving Usain Bolt a run for his money. I am getting to an age I would not buy green bananas, not that I have in the last eight years you understand, nothing like an overripe banana for sending a diabetics blood glucose sky high.

With the weather warming up any time soon, it's got to be out more and spend less time clicking that mouse. Time to get out on my favourite lake, or down on the South Coast fishing.

BTW Our youngest son Rob has just gone vegan, it could have been worse, much worse, he could have become a member of the Tory party. Please check out his fledgling blog here, nepotism is best kept in the family don't you think.

Eddie

Coronation Chicken : Just right for a Celebration

Did you know that Coronation chicken was first created to celebrate the Queen's coronation in 1953, and has been a firm favourite ever since.

Details from Wikipedia state "Constance Spry, an English food writer and flower arranger, and Rosemary Hume, a chef, both principals of the Cordon Bleu Cookery School in London, are credited with the invention of coronation chicken. Preparing the food for the banquet of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, Spry proposed the recipe of cold chicken, curry cream sauce and dressing that would later become known as coronation chicken.

Coronation chicken may have been inspired by jubilee chicken, a dish prepared for the silver jubilee of George V in 1935, which mixed chicken with mayonnaise and curry. Additionally, for the Queen's Golden Jubilee in 2002, another celebratory dish was devised, also called Jubilee chicken."

If you'd like to have your own special occasion featuring this dish these are the ingredients you will need ...

Serves Six
1 chicken stock cube
500 g (British) chicken breast fillet
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp mild curry powder
1 tbsp tomato purée
0.5 tbsp cider vinegar
2 tbsp apricot jam
Zest and juice of ½ a washed, unwaxed lemon
100 ml (lighter) mayonnaise
100 ml 2% fat natural yogurt
60 g flaked almonds
2 tbsp washed and chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Fresh watercress leaves, washed, to garnish

Optional - Crusty white bread, to serve

Here is how to make the dish ...

1. Bring a large pan of water to the boil. Add the stock cube and stir to dissolve. Reduce to a simmer and poach the chicken breasts for 5-10 minutes (depending on the size of the fillets) until cooked through and no pink colour remains. Remove with a slotted spoon and allow to cool before shredding. Discard the stock.
2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a pan and cook the onion for about 10 minutes, until softened. Stir in the curry powder, tomato purée, cider vinegar and jam, and cook for a further 1-2 minutes. Remove from the heat and spoon into a large bowl.
3. Add the shredded chicken along with the lemon zest and juice, mayonnaise, yogurt, ⅔ of the flaked almonds and 1 tablespoon of the parsley and stir until well coated.

4. To serve, place on a serving platter and garnish with the watercress and remaining almonds and parsley.

Optional - Serve with some crusty white bread.

Original recipe idea here 

I wonder, may I offer you a glass of wine to go with this dish or would you prefer something else?

... we try and bring a variety of recipe ideas to this blog, and not all may be suitable for you. If you may have any food allergies, or underlying health issues these must always be taken into account. If you are a diabetic and not sure how certain foods may affect your blood sugars, test is best, i.e. use your meter.

All the best Jan

Dr. Rangan Chatterjee: Why Modern Medicine Needs to Change

I love general practice but I don't love the way general practice operates at the moment. Many of my patients feel frustrated by the short consultation times and feel as though they're "on the clock" from the minute they walk in. This results in them pre-filtering information that they deem relevant to the consultation, which doesn't help them or me.

GP satisfaction isn't any better. A recent study published in the Lancet warns that General Practice in England is reaching "saturation point", with job dissatisfaction and stress amongst GPs at their highest levels for over a decade. I believe that if you have unhappy doctors, you will have unhappy patients.

Do we need longer consultation times? Absolutely. But I believe that there is another key factor in improving patients' health outcomes as well as doctor satisfaction: medical education.

Getting to the root cause
A few years into my job as a GP, I realised that I was probably only helping around 25 per cent of the patients walking through my door. Sure, I could give them a drug to "suppress" their symptoms but was I getting to the root cause of the problem? No.

One of the problems is that in medical school we are mostly taught a model of care suitable for acute problems, that is primarily pharmaceutical based. However, the health landscape in the UK has changed dramatically over the past few years. The vast majority of chronic problems that I see today - such as type 2 diabetes, obesity, gut problems, insomnia and headaches - are largely driven by lifestyle choices.

Take diabetes. In April 2016, the World Health Organisation (WHO) reported that total diabetes cases had had nearly quadrupled to 422 million in 2014 from 108 million in 1980, with nearly one in 11 adults worldwide affected by the disease - the majority of these are Type 2.

Type 2 diabetes, like many chronic diseases, is potentially preventable and is largely driven by our lifestyle and environment. So, why is the UK spending over £20 billion pounds every year on the direct and indirect costs of this condition?

We have known what needs to be done for many years now so why are we unable to stop this avalanche cascading forward with no sign of slowing?

I often chat with my colleagues about this and a recurrent theme pervades: We were not given enough training in nutrition, lifestyle or behaviour change. Good health occurs outside the doctor's surgery - not inside.

Fundamentally, chronic problems need a different approach to acute ones. The magic bullet intervention that works for acute illness does not work as well for chronic problems. These often need many small but positive changes that, when implemented together, can have a powerful synergistic effect.

Addressing the real issues
My frustration with the situation led me to seek out individual study in nutrition, lifestyle interventions and movement science. I also learnt a framework of how to put this all together and apply that knowledge in a safe and effective way. This has reignited my passion for my job. Most importantly, my patients are reaping the benefits.

I am delighted to have had the opportunity to showcase the power of a different approach to medicine on the BBC One programme Doctor in the House. For a month at time, I lived alongside three very different families, observing them as they went to work, slept, grocery shopped, exercised and ate. This gave me the insight I needed to put a range of simple and effective changes into effect.

The success of these changes demonstrated that such varied conditions such as type 2 diabetes (both new and established), obesity, menopausal symptoms, eczema, and many more can all be substantially improved and even reversed using the power of nutrition and lifestyle. Yes, that's right, reversed.

The era of the generalist
I'm also passionate about promoting the value of the expert generalist. In one episode of Doctor in the House, I worked with a five-year-old boy who had three seemingly "different" conditions: abdominal pain causing time off school, severe eczema and gastro-oesophageal reflux. When we first met, he was taking three different kinds of medications from three different doctors.

I was the first doctor to put it all together for the parents and explain that the root cause of all three was the same. By addressing this one issue, all three conditions were almost fully reversed within a few weeks.

As a society, we have over-emphasised the role of the specialist and undervalued the role of the generalist. In order to tackle chronic disease effectively, we need to move from the era of the super specialist into the era of the super generalist.

I believe that there is a strong case to put nutrition and lifestyle at the heart of medical education so that together we can better serve our patients. It is time to change the trajectory of chronic disease that is already making the NHS as well as many other healthcare systems unsustainable.

The British Medical Journal is currently running a Too Much Medicine campaign, which I fully support. I believe it is time for modern medicine to acknowledge that we have lost our way somewhere - over-diagnosis, over-investigation, over-medicalisation and over-treatment. We need to get back to the root cause.

What we put on our plates and how we use our bodies are the most powerful tools we have. It is time to start using them to take back our health.

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/

Graham

Taking Time To Say Thank You

Would you believe we are now in May ... the weeks do fly by.

The low carb team have been busy working hard posting a wide selection of articles, and will continue to do so.

We enjoy ... presenting articles, news items, thoughts, recipe ideas, some music and even a cartoon every now and then for all to read. It is a mix which we hope includes something for everyone to read and enjoy!

We firmly believe in the LCHF lifestyle.

We would like to to say a big thank you to ALL our readers, and those who do take time to stop and leave a thought or comment, you are appreciated.

Included here are just a few thank you's from the many different countries who use this blog, with some apologies, because we know there are many languages that do not appear here.

THANK YOU to all.

merci, danke, tak, terima kasih, xie xie, grazie, dziekuje, obrigado, spasibo, gracias, tack, tesekkür ederim, do jeh, Дякую, thank you.

Good Luck and Good Health To All

From Jan, Eddie and Graham - 'the low carb team'

Keziah Jones et Ben l'Oncle Soul - "Simply Beautiful"

Graham

Son Little - Your Love Will Blow Me Away - Later... with Jools Holland

Good track from Jan adding some variety to music night alas though poor old Eddie is stuck in a a time warp as good as the ZZ Tops tune is it's old hat.

Spotted this on last night's Later with Jules Holland's  new to me enjoy

Graham

ZZ Top - Gimme All Your Lovin

More QUALITY Saturday night music, I expect Graham will come along later with some limp wristed modern stuff. Eddie. OK I'll get me coat.

Genesis - Turn It On Again (Live)

Very nice tracks Jan, but, time to kick butt. Open up a bottle of wine, turn up the volume and blow ya brains out time. Eddie

Andrea Bocelli - Love in Portofino

Another track from me. I was fortunate enough to have visited Portofino some years ago and have a wonderful oil painting of the port painted by a cousin. All the best Jan

Romeo Santos - Propuesta Indecente

Saturday night is music night on our blog and tonight I'm starting it off. I have always loved dancing to Latin music and love this track. It has received 957,048,375 if that is true WOW a lot of people agree with me. All the best Jan.

Why I follow Dr Zoe Harcombe PhD

 Dr Zoe Harcombe PhD

I have been following and reading Zoe Harcombe's work for almost eight years. At type two diagnosis I was at least 50 lbs. over weight. Zoe is an expert on healthy dietary lifestyles and weight control, please note she is not a registered British Dietetic Association dietitian, which is good. 

The BDA is not a research organisation, it's more akin to a trade union, and a PR vehicle for registered dietitians. Zoe does not follow an accepted script, very often written by junk food company's and big pharma shills. As you can see Zoe is a picture of health and clearly has no weight problems. Oh that could be said for some of the most vocal and high profile BDA dietitians, who appear to be carrying more blubber, than the late and great Luciano Pavarotti, and look about as healthy as a week old cadaver. 

The bottom line, who am I going to take flying lessons from, an ex Concorde pilot or a Kamikaze, get my drift. It never fails to amaze me, to see and hear dietitians lecturing on a healthy diet and weight control, when it is abundantly obvious they cannot even help themselves.

Over the years, Zoe has taken some stick from dietitians and people writing on diabetes forums I call them the great unwashed. One of her crimes is to have written some excellent books "she's only in it for the money" these semi illiterates squawk, as if earning an honest living should carry a prison sentence. The BDA is no fan of Zoe, because they believe they are the font of all dietary knowledge. Trust me, they are not.

One only has to walk down any high street, or take a trip around any supermarket, and you will see the complete and utter failure of the likes of the BDA. That being said, the BDA dietitians have some great get out lines "the patients fail to comply with advice" "we can't watch them spoon every mouthful of food" "our information is evidenced based" (whose evidence? junk food and big phama's?) the list is long. The $64000 question is why the monumental failure, because the usual dietary advice from BDA members, regarding weight loss and diabetes blood glucose control, is about as much use as a rubber beak on a woodpecker. Just ask any nil/minimum medication well controlled diabetic.

If you are looking to lose or control your weight, and want to know what a truly healthy diet is all about, check out Zoe's site on the link below, because not only can she talk the talk, she can also walk the walk.

Disclaimer. Contrary to what some have said, I do not have a poor view of all dietitians, I know some awesome dietitians, some are also registered diabetes educators. Unfortunately, very few are in the UK. All are independents, and as such are not in the grip of junk food outfits, as so many dietitians and their associations are. 

Zoe's site is here.

Eddie

Is Coca-Cola on its way out?

By Emma Reynolds of news.com.au

The love affair is over. After so many hot summer days together, nights out, nights in and cosy Christmases, we're moving on.

Coca-Cola is dead, and no one is sorry.

The iconic brand has tried everything to keep that fizz going. As it realised people were turning on its signature teeth-rotting drink, it created diet choices.

When the healthy eating movement decided sugarfree sodas were almost as bad, it came up with Coca-Cola Life, made with natural sweetener stevia.

It unveiled new packaging, "unifying" its labelling so that all of its drinks feature a red disc like the original Coke, so fans feel more like they're drinking The Real Thing.

Tragically, what the brand just doesn't understand is that's precisely what we're no longer interested in.

More on this story here.

Eddie

Mary Berry at Crab Fest Salcombe : And Crabbing at Mudeford Quay

In the UK this weekend it's a bank holiday weekend ... yes a three day weekend. Some may be planning on travelling to spend time with family and friends. Others may be staying local and enjoying (weather permitting) some local fun-filled charity events, or simply doing some gardening or decorating! Whatever your plans, and whatever the weather I do hope it will be an enjoyable weekend.

Now should you happen to be in South West England, and in particular near Salcombe, you may like to go along to the Crab Festival, where there will be plenty to see and do, just keep fingers crossed for dry weather! Lovely Mary Berry will officially open proceedings ... I wonder if she may have a delicious crab recipe - or perhaps it will be one of her cakes for all to see!

above image of Salcombe from here

Salcombe Crab Festival

"WELCOME to Salcombe Crabfest inaugural event 1st May 2016. We hope you will have a fantastic day out at this new and unique festival to celebrate crab and all things seafood – and enjoy the opportunity to see over 40 exhibitors and raise money for local charities.  

With so much to see and do, the organisers are delighted that the event will be opened on the 1st May at 10am by the ‘Queen of Cakes’, Mary Berry (CBE) who will be talking about her life, favourite recipes and of course the hit TV series of The Great British Bake Off.

Plus please remember to walk along to the RNLI for crabbing activities and then on to Whitestrand Quay to see a collection of local commercial and heritage fishing boats. Today is all about raising money for a number of local charities. 

The RNLI is the charity that saves lives at sea - they provide, on call, a 24-hour lifeboat search and rescue service around the UK and Ireland, and a seasonal lifeguard service. With their lifeboats, lifeguards, safety advice and flood rescue, they are committed to saving lives ... 24 people a day.

image shows Shannon lifeboat with a fund raising cake

not sure if it was made by Mary Berry

or a volunteer helping the RNLI raise funds ...

Another great place for crabbing is Mudeford Quay, Dorset, pictured below

The grand-children love going there and doing some crabbing. You can also visit the fresh fish stall to buy crabs, scallops and all sorts of great fish. If you are down that way, I can recommend it, it's a lovely place to visit. Walk along and take in the sights and sounds, see the local fishing boats, have a ferry boat ride over to Mudeford Sandbank and just take time to spend a relaxing day...

Here is a lovely crab recipe 

Crab Bites (bacon wrapped crab) - you can see it here

Here is a lovely scallops recipe

Pan Fried Scallops With Warm Chorizo - see it here

Wishing all readers a Happy Weekend

All the best Jan