DrCarney.com Blog

The Paleo Diet, which refers to the Paleolithic Diet, (or Caveman Diet), has become a popular approach to weight loss and improved health.  The Paleo Diet restricts carbohydrates and starches such as potatoes, beans, legumes, and grains and encourages animal products to be eaten at every meal. Dr. John McDougall refers to the Paleo Diet...

Cancer is divided into stages. The first stage is initiation. This is where cancer starts, with genes which may become capable of producing cancer cells as they divide. Then the promotion stage may take years in order for the cancer to grow enough to be detected. Nutrition is important here as what we eat can promote the cancer cells to grow. In particular, animal protein is the food substance that Dr. Cambell's research discovered best turned on the cancer ability to grow. 

Even though soy milk does not have feminizing effects on men, many men are afraid to consume soy products due to its "phytoestrogen" content.  Phytoestrogens are compounds which are similar to the female hormone estrogen. Men should be aware that cow's milk, actually does contain high levels of estrogen hormones.

This is an excellent 27 minute presentation given by John Mackey of Whole Foods Market.  He explains the benefits associated from eating a whole-food, nutrient-dense, plant-based diet.

Medical experts predict that today's children will be the first generation that will not outlive their parents. This is partly due to the sharp rise in obesity among American children. Steven Kenneth Galson, former US Surgeon General, states that the obesity epidemic is a result of "an increasingly sedentary lifestyle and poor nutrition."

A new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that high blood sugar levels were associated with an increased incident of dementia. Over 2,000 men and women over the age of 65 were studied for 6-8 years. Those participants that had a blood glucose of 115, compared to 100, had a 15% increased risk of developing dementia. Prior studies done revealed that those with diabetes had an increased incidence, yet this study shows that non-diabetics with elevated glucose levels are at a higher risk as well. Read the article by PCRM here.

What does your typical diet look like for one day? If you answered bacon and eggs for breakfast, turkey and cheese sandwich for lunch, and chicken fried steak for dinner, you're not alone. Basing every meal around an animal-based protein source is believed to be a necessary component in the human diet. Dr. Michael Klaper...

According to the Physician's Committee for Responsible Medicine, "Many Americans still consume substantial amounts of dairy products—and government policies still promote them—despite scientific evidence that questions their health benefits and indicates their potential health risks." A few of the risks associated with dairy consumption include an increased incidence of cancer, heart disease, acne, osteoporosis, gastrointestinal...

Although most people believe that hypertension is a natural consequence of aging, hypertension is actually the consequence from years of consuming a diet rich in saturated animal products, oils, refined sugars, processed foods, and salt. These foods play a major role in promoting diseased arteries.

High blood pressure is not a disease, but a symptom of these diseased arteries. As cholesterol containing plaques begin to line the walls of the arteries, the arteries begin to narrow, stiffen, and lose their elasticity which causes a rise in pressure. Medications artificially treat the symptoms which gives the patient a false sense of security while their disease progresses. By switching to a Starch-Smart® diet, you will be giving your body a chance to heal the arteries, and reverse the disease.

The healthiest foods of course are those that are grown in a garden and consumed "in their natural form." However, there are some packaged foods that can be included in a healthy, Starch-Smart® diet. These foods are minimally processed, keeping their fiber and nutrient content intact. Jeff Novick gives us some guidelines to follow when we make a trip to the grocery store, in his article: "The 10 Healthiest Packaged Foods."

Every meal we consume affects our health either in a positive or negative way.  If our diets consist mainly of heavily processed foods and animal products, rich in saturated fats, oils, salt and sugar, we are creating an environment that encourages chronic degenerative disease.

Depression is one of the most common reasons patients go to visit their doctors, especially during the Winter months. As a result, antidepressants are one of the most widely prescribed medications today. Using a whole-food, nutrient-dense, plant-based diet has been very successful in treating patients with mild to moderate depression. Dr. Michael Greger explains in the 6-minute video below how antidepressants work and how plant foods can produce similar results without harmful side effects.

For more information on how a plant-based diet can prevent and reverse depression, see Dr. Carney's Depression and Anxiety Pinterest Board.