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Chapter 1

STARCH: THE TRADITIONAL DIET OF PEOPLE

Have you had your rice today?

    This Chinese greeting—the equivalent of our how are you?—reminds us that, for the Chinese, whether or not you’ve eaten rice is the ultimate measure of well-being. Rice is that essential to the Chinese diet. Throughout most of Asia, the average person eats rice two to three times daily. Rice is also an important food in the Middle East, Latin America, Italy, and the West Indies. After corn it is the second most produced food worldwide, and the world’s single most important source of energy, providing more than 20 percent of calories consumed by humans around the globe.

    In China, the word for rice and food are one and the same. Likewise, in Japan the word for cooked rice also means “meal.” Buddhists refer to grains of rice as “little Buddhas,” while in Thailand the call that brings the family to the table is “Eat rice.” In India, the first food a new bride offers her husband is not cake but rice. It is also the first solid food that will be offered to her baby.

Over 250 people attended this biannual McDougall event in Santa Rosa, California, and more than 600 watched it “almost live” over the Internet. (This is a new attendance record for both venues). This sold out event was definitely a landmark in the war to tell the truth about good nutrition and conservative medical care to the public. Every single speaker received rave reviews—and deservedly so!

H. Gilbert Welch, MD was the highlight for me (Dr. McDougall). I have been trying to explain the harms from early detection campaigns (like PSA for prostate and mammograms for breast cancers) to my patients for more than thirty years. The result: Many people thought I must be wrong or at least exaggerating the lack of benefits and the harms done. Dr. Welch explained how 5 to 50 times more people are over-diagnosed with cancer for every person helped. (Overdiagnosis refers to the diagnosis and treatment of cancer that would never have caused symptoms. If not for meddling doctors, the vast majority of patients would have never known they were sick. Once they are told they have cancer then their lives are forever changed for the worse.) In his second lecture he explained how the relative benefits (the ones’ advertised to the patient) from a therapy sound far greater than the real (the absolute) benefits.

Tunisian Sweet Potato Stew

Tex-Mex Potatoes

Wendy's Curried Barley and Eggplant

Mediterranean Greens

Curried Quinoa Gravenstein Apple Salad

Bob's Mighty Tasty Gluten-free Cereal

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2012 John McDougall All Rights Reserved
Dr. McDougall's Health and Medical Center
P.O. Box 14039, Santa Rosa, CA 95402
https://www.drmcdougall.com