So it turns out that Dr Abram Hoffer, one of the founders of the concept of orthomolecular medicine, was a controversial figure in his day. In 1974, he gave a talk that was transcribed to an article in the Journal of Orthomolecular Medicine, that had some very common-sense things to say about proteins, fats, and carbohydrates.
I don’t agree with everything I’ve read from him regarding hypoglycemia, as a hypoglycemic myself. A big disagreement is that he claims hypoglycemics have an insatiable sweet tooth! Every hypoglyemic I’ve ever met, was similar to myself in that no, we did NOT have much, if any sweet tooth! However, diabetics we met, did! This isn’t to say that diabetes and hypoglycemia are completely separate. They are at two ends of the same stick and I’ve already shared how if not careful with what they eat, hypoglycemics can switch over to diabeties.
But today’s professional reading included an article from Hoffer that, minus a few pieces of controversy, are otherwise bang on, and that even to this day, close to 50 years later, many in mainstream medical persist in ignoring or denouncing.
For example, two thoughts you won’t find together today:
First:
“The proteins, fats, and carbohydrates have been isolated in pure form and can be consumed in pure form or can be used to enrich other foods. In nature these food components do not exist in a pure form. They are all intertwined. Only the magic of chemistry has made it possible to pull out these artifacts.”
This is a big reason I push wholefood as medicine! When all the components of your food are together inside the form God created, each nutritional or medicinal element is held in God’s idea of balance and quantity in a far safer and more accessible manner than when we isolate the compounds and expect them to work in quantities out of sync with their now-missing counterparts.
Second:
“The extraction of protein probably will be beneficial since many people consume too little protein and would benefit from enrichment of their food with protein. Thus bread enriched with protein, say legume protein, may be made much more nutritious. Since many children have only toast and a glass of milk for breakfast, it would be helpful if the quality of the toast could be brought up to the standard of a hamburger properly made.”
I had to chuckle at that last statement above. Hamburgers are seen as ultra-processed junk foods by various respected voices today, although the separate ingredients that make up the burger are otherwise considered real if not whole foods. Of course I’m assuming you are making it at home from scratch, where you know the ingredients you used to make the burger patty. The only thing in a burger that might be unhealthy is the bun (if it is white bread), and perhaps any sugar-heavy condiments. Many might remember the hullabaloo over McDonald’s years ago, when it had come to light that their burger patties had far less actual beef in them than claimed. The joke that their burgers were cardboard, quickly took off. They’ve gone overboard in recent years, trying to make themselves look appealing in recent waves of healthy-eating fads going around.
The same goes for the typical pizza. If you are using whole foods to dress the pizza, as opposed to processed foods, then you basically have spaghetti on flat bread! Crumbled hamburger, chopped sausage, bacon, diced onions, garlic, peppers and mushrooms. If you ensure that all proteins are cooked before assembly, if the dough is cooked before assembly, all you have to do is heat through and melt the cheese (not overly brown it). Ensure the pizza dough is not made from white flour, and you’re good to go.
But… well. . . there’s those ultra-processed ingredients that ruin it. . . white flour dough, sausages with nitrates added in the processing, and then broiling the whole thing till the cheese is nearly black. Granted, charred cheese really does have a nice taste to it, but that much heat changes the fats from healthy to unhealthy. If you really want to eat a food that ends up high in tryglycerides, be sure you are also eating foods that lower those levels!
Speaking of fats, Hoffer was already saying in 1974, what Mercola and others have been trying to say more recently.
“Generally it is considered that the unsaturated fats are qualitatively better than the saturated fats, although it is well known that there has to be a proper ratio of one to the other. I would guess that 20 percent of the total fat content of the diet ought to be unsaturated, allowing 80 percent to remain the usual kind of saturated fat. The quality of fat is also determined by the so-called essential fats which are the 18, 20, and 22 carbon fats; for example, arachidonic acid.”
Arachidonic Acid is actually an Omega-6 EFA. We now know that we want higher levels of Omega-3’s to 6’s. High Omega-6 diets are causing problems now.
“…there is a poor correlation between fat consumption and the incidence of cardiovascular disease. However, it is also becoming clear that to switch entirely over to unsaturated fats might be dangerous since these fats are subject to what is called peroxidation; that is, they tend to oxidize quite readily to form highly toxic molecules or free radicals. One of the functions of vitamin E is to protect fat against peroxidation. Therefore when the quantity of unsaturated fat in the diet is greatly increased, there is a heavier demand upon vitamin E, and this may in itself produce vitamin E deficiency. “
“If too little fat is consumed, this throws an increasing strain upon protein and carbohydrate to provide energy and also increases one’s appetite, since the stomach empties so quickly. A person becomes hungry very soon after having had a meal. There must be a proper quantity of fat within the diet to look after these various factors. Probably around 35 percent of the diet as calories ought to be fat. “
This last paragraph above hits the nail on the head as to why people can claim to be eating low-fat, but still gain weight! The benefits of the dietary fat are removed, and in it’s place, sugar is used to attempt making up the slack and the person is hungrier! This additional hunger is often compounded due to the low-fat diet also being low in protein.
Protein slows the need to eat more, and it lasts longer in the system, so you don’t feel like you have to eat as frequently. This is important for hypoglycemics. Hoffer notes however, that the protein a hypogycemic needs and can tolerate, may be different from one person to the next. Apparently at the time he was practicing, other doctors were prescribing diets high in beef and milk and one guy Hoffer saw, was allergic to beef and another to milk. But Hoffer adds that in addition to being careful about what proteins a person uses in their diet, that there is enough of it to do the job. He qualifies that plant proteins are inferior, although two or more plant proteins can be put together to get 8 of the 9 essential amino acids. What he doesn’t say is how bioavailable those proteins are. Beans for example, the highest and most complete form of protein in the plant world, require soaking over night to a few days to make those proteins accessible, and even then, the fact those proteins are stored in lectins can spell trouble for lectin-sensitive people.
It’s both interesting and frustrating that over 50 years ago, we knew about this stuff and mainstream medical pushed it under the rug! In the right proportions, Hippocrates was right, let your food be your medicine, and your medicine your food!
