Heart disease reversed

For those questions and discussions on the McDougall program that don’t seem to fit in any other forum.

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Postby Melinda » Mon May 25, 2009 1:44 pm

We need fruit, veggie, and grain organizations to band together and push their products, just like all the unhealthy 'food' producers do. I believe Colin Campbell mentions this in his book.
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Postby Melinda » Mon May 25, 2009 1:49 pm

And another thought - there must be a way to get the insurance companies to insist that clients try lifestyle programs, prior to any other treatment. They would save a bundle of money, and isn't that what insurance companies are all about? ( I know some companies cover the Ornish program, but I don't believe it is mandatory at all.)
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Dr. McDougall's experience

Postby SactoBob » Mon May 25, 2009 2:23 pm

I brought up that very point to Dr. McDougall in our skype session yesterday. He has worked on three occasions with employers or insurers, and in each case been very successful from a medical standpoint. However, in each case, the people in charge did not see the merit in his program. He is working on something now that may change that soon.

A large part of the criticism centers around the inability of people to follow the program, and that is probably a valid criticism. Even here, where everybody seems to accept the merit of the program, adherence is a widespread problem. To me, the best thing each one of us can do is get really adherent with the program, because that will result shortly in not only the look of health, but the fact of health.

Dr. McDougall commented upon how a previous TV comparison of his clients versus Atkins clients showed a marked difference in that his patients looked healthy and Atkins looked sick. Probably the worst advertisement for our program are those who have been at it a long time and still obviously not in a good state of health. Of course, we still want those people to succeed - but they do make the point that this program is easier to speak well of than to do. That is where Doug Lisle's dvds are so good.

Really, this is a strength of the program though. I think everybody who has gotten to 100% adherence will tell you that after awhile, it is no problem at all to do. When I previously tried Weight Watchers, it was clear to me that I would never adapt easily to denying myself food when I was hungry. I once previously tried Atkins and indeed felt really sick - just awful - and it never got better. I felt pretty sick starting this program, but it soon went away. My wife and others had no problem at all converting.

But in these economic times, it is hard to see how we have billions to spend on surgeries and pills that don't really work when the best treatment costs insurers nothing. These medical expenses are reflected in the price of the products we buy and the taxes we pay. How much longer can it go on?
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Postby Melinda » Mon May 25, 2009 4:04 pm

I have become friends recently with a nurse I used to work with. I had not seen her for about a year, she has always been overweight, and when we got together I noticed she had lost a lot of weight. She said that she and her husband had been following Atkins, and found it very easy. I congratulated her on her weight loss, but it was apparent that her skin was suffering as it was (and continues to be) blotchy and broken out. (It had been clear pre-Atkins). I didn't bring up this way of eating, as it was unfortunately obvious that she was happy with eating the Atkins way.
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Re: Many, Many, foods available

Postby Nettie » Wed May 27, 2009 7:33 am

SactoBob wrote:That is a key, Melinda. At first, I wondered what I would eat. The produce section of the market used to be like a foreign country, and I couldn't understand whats people would find there that was even edible.
I had no idea how many different foods were available.


I had this experience, too. Since practically the only vegetables I ate were french fries and green beans, I was clueless about what I was going to eat. So, I started off McDougalling with canned goods: beans, corn, green beans, stewed tomatoes and turnip greens, all dumped in a pot and heated up.

It took a while for me to learn to eat salads with raw spinach (which I now love) and to cook veggies. Dr. McDougall's cookbook has been invaluable, along with the recipes I get from the forums here.

I still tend to eat the same things all the time since I don't get bored with the foods that I love, but that's my choice. There are lots of different foods out there that I can eat if I get adventurous. People ask me "What do you eat?" and I tell them "lots and lots of good food, all I want!"

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