The FDA is overstepping its authority on what a healthy diet is.  It's time to state the obvious--The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) is chock full of a bunch of blithering idiots! There, I said it. And now that I have, I really don't feel a bit of remorse about making such a bold statement after learning about something they recently did to a low-carb company I'm gonna share with you today.

I suppose for background purposes, you might want to read the "How To Lose And Manage Weight" page at the FDA web site to understand their philosophy about diet and health. Of course, it is based on the archaic and failed ideals of the low-fat, low-calorie, portion control diet in combination with regular exercise.

Hey geniuses at the FDA! If those work so well, then why do we still have a bunch of fat people running around our country? Isn't that the same message we've heard for most of the past three decades and yet obesity and health problems are at an all-time high? Sounds like we need to change the game plan just a wee bit, don't ya think?

And if those diets don't work for you, then certainly you can always take a risky diet drug like orlistat or even get your insides cut open for LAP-BAND surgery. Is the FDA serious about that? You bet they are...go check out the site for yourself and you'll see these listed among the options for people dealing with a weight problem (what about livin' la vida low-carb? NOPE!).

Sheez! Is it any wonder why obesity has skyrocketed so much in America? With a government agency like the FDA going around spouting off all this nutritional nonsense about a low-fat, low-calorie diet, it's enough to make you physically sick to your stomach to even think about. But, unfortunately, they have a lot of power over diet and health policy in the United States and they have made it abundantly known to a low-carb company what they think about their product.

The identity of this company will remain anonymous in this post for obvious reasons, but you would recognize it if I told you. The FDA confiscated this company's products during a recent shipment and sent it to their lab for testing as well as examining the nutritional label with a fine-toothed comb. The result was a heavy-handed reprimand about the how unhealthy the product was because of "all that fat" which they claim would make it impossible for people to lose weight.

Come on, FDA! It's not the fat in foods that makes you fat, it's the SUGAR and other refined carbohydrates that are the root cause of obesity. Haven't you learned ANYTHING from the late great Dr. Robert C. Atkins about the dangers of excessive carbs on weight and health? That's one thing the Atkins diet has done for our culture is educate our society about overconsuming carbs and demonstrating that it has consequences.

But don't tell that to the FDA, though!

Regarding claims that sugar spikes your insulin levels which then leads to obesity, the FDA said to this low-carb company that claim is simply "not proven" and that the low-carb diet for all intents and purposes amounts to "sheer nonsense." In other words, our good old FDA thinks sugar is just as healthy as it can be for people to consume with no consequences to their health. Puh-leez! People who are livin' la vida low-carb know better and the FDA should be ashamed of themselves for pretending sugar has no connection to obesity.

As for this "sheer nonsense" bull-funky, all I have to say is this way of eating absolutely saved my life, FDA! You and all your ivory tower minions in Washington, DC oughta try living out in the real world for a change with people like me who used to weigh over 400 pounds and was able to attain great weight loss and weight maintenance success because of that "sheer nonsense" diet you seethe over.

Get with the times, FDA! All the latest research is pointing to livin' la vida low-carb as EQUAL to low-fat! It really makes you stop and wonder if ANYONE at the FDA has ever lost weight! Me thinks they're just a bunch of clueless mind-numbed robots who couldn't help an obese person lose weight if they tried.

Come live in my world for just two seconds, FDA! You wouldn't survive!

When the FDA can threaten an innocent low-carb company like this one just because they disagree with what solid nutritional science is showing, it's time for the citizens to demand better from their government. We don't need to have the FDA hold our hand about the fat content of the foods we eat.

If they truly cared about our health, then they would sound the alarm against the excessive sugar and high-fructose corn syrup that is in EVERYTHING we eat these days. Now there's the real danger to weight and health the FDA can jump on.

Do you see what we are up against in this battle for the hearts and minds of overweight and obese people. The FDA is slamming the door in our face about livin' la vida low-carb while doing all it can to protect the interests of the low-fat proponents and their buddies in the sugar and corn industries. Where's the objectivity, FDA?! How about looking out for the average American citizen's best interest for a change?

Big brother is watching and he ain't on OUR side.

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written by Jimmy Moore, April 26, 2007

THANKS for your comments, Violet (are you sure you don't work for the FDA? LOL!). Allow me to respond to your concerns.

We cannot sugarcoat the clear connections that exist between government health entities like the FDA and USDA with the food companies because the very issue of health is at stake here. How can we trust the information is what is best for us when they have the best economic interests of the food manufacturers in mind FIRST?

While you believe the FDA promotes portion control alone, you would be dead wrong about that. Just go pay a visit to their web site and you'll see they want people to eat low-fat this and low-calorie that to be healthy.

What's wrong with saturated fat? There are so many studies coming out right now that support the idea of eating saturated fat as long as you keep your carbohydrates reduced.

To paraphrase a famous rallying cry from Bill Clinton when he was running for president in 1992, "It's the CARBS, stupid!"

We need to stop being so hung up on fat being the great enemy. Researchers like Dr. Jeff Volek and Dr. Mary Vernon have found that saturated fat consumption is not harmful when combined with a low-carb intake. This is documented fact in study after study and there's more to come.

I've never been a proponent of "eliminating carbs from your diet." Instead, my weight loss and subsequent weight maintenance has come from LIMITING carb intake, something most Americans would benefit greatly from if they would only receive a little encouragement from groups like the FDA.

Unfortunately, that's not gonna happen and you and I both know it. Livin' la vida low-carb is not just anecdotal, but proven scientific fact. Have you even been paying attention at all the studies coming out in the past couple of years?

And it's more than just weight loss, too! Take a look at just a few of the health ailments that recent research has been found to improve or eradicate:
fatty liver, infertility, high blood pressure, brain cancer, HDL and triglycerides, GERD, PCOS, diabetes, pancreatic cancer, heart disease, esophageal cancer, kidney cancer, insulin resistance, Alzheimer's disease, elevated blood sugar levels, cholesterol, Parkinson's disease, osteoporosis, epilepsy, headaches...

Shall I go on, Violet? There's plenty more where this came from. That's why I write about the hypocrisy that oozes out of these very institutions that purport to be on our side as it relates to health.

It's obvious they don't want to give people the whole truth and that's sad.

THANKS for your comments!

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written by Violet, April 26, 2007

I agree that the FDA's and USDA's dietary recommendations are often inappropriately influenced by the food and agricultural industry. However, I believe that your above lambast of the FDA is unmerited.

As I am ignorant concerning the identity of the confiscated food items, I cannot evaluate the fairness of the FDA's indictment. Nevertheless, I can point out errors in your critique of the FDA's dietary recommendations; the FDA does not advocate a low fat, low calorie diet.

Indeed, the FDA supports portion control. Indeed, the FDA encourages reduction in SATURATED fat. However, UNSATURATED fat consumption IS endorsed. And contrary to your a*sessment, the FDA does emphasize reduction and elimination of refined and added sugars from the diet. Carbohydrates from whole grains, vegetables, and fruits are approved. However, these carbohydrates are also allowed on later phases of the Atkins diet, at least according to "Dr. Atkin's New Diet Revolution."

I do not contest that you successfully lost weight, and hopefully feel stronger, more energetic, and happier, by eliminating carbs from your diet. However, the FDA cannot make dietary recommendations for the American population based on anecdotal evidence. Dietary recommendations must be based on scientific evidence attained from long-term, large sample studies. Harvard's Dr. Walter c. Willett has analyzed such data to elucidate the ideal diet for attainment of a healthy weight and reduction in the risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer. The ideal diet, according to his analysis, includes moderate amounts of protein (primarily low in fat and from vegetable sources), large quantities of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and a moderate amount of unsaturated fats. If you are interested in his analysis, read "Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy" or the companion book "Eat, Drink, and Weigh Less."