Page 13 - Summer2009

Caustic Commentary

vitamin A prevents vitamin D toxicity in the kidneys and ease. If the politically correct pundits understood that fact,
that the two vitamins work synergistically to improve kidney they wouldn’t have to reach so deep into their barrel of lame
health (www.cholesterol-and-health.com/cholesterol-blog. explanations and pull out things like strong family and social
html). These studies underscore the importance of avoiding WLHV 7R WKH VFLHQWL¿FDOO\ FRUUHFW WKHUH DUH QR P\VWHULHV LQ
vitamin D supplements without supporting vitamin A, or of Rosetto. Residents’ obesity was probably due to their lack of
taking brands of cod liver oil that contain vitamin A but very exercise and the sweet desserts they liked, but their hearts
little vitamin D. were strong because they consumed plenty of the ideal fuel
for the heart—saturated fat.
HEALTHY OUTLIERS EAT LARD
,Q WKH V WKH UHVLGHQWV RI 5RVHWWR 3HQQV\OYDQLD EDIÀHG VEGETABLES FLUNK AGAIN
researchers with their exceptionally low rates of heart dis- Another study on vitamin K has found that vitamin K , the
2
ease. In his new bestselling book Outliers: The Story of animal form of vitamin K, decreases the risk of heart disease.
Success, author Malcolm Gladwell notes that those under Vitamin K WKH SODQW IRUP RI YLWDPLQ . SURYLGHG QR EHQH¿W
1
¿IW\ ¿YH \HDUV ROG KDG DOPRVW 7KH ¿QGLQJV HPHUJHG ZLWK DQ
no heart disease whatsoever analysis of the Prospect-EPIC
DQG WKRVH RYHU VL[W\ ¿YH VXI- FRKRUW FRQVLVWLQJ RI
IHUHG URXJKO\ RQO\ SHUFHQW post-menopausal women, aged
as much heart disease as did EHWZHHQ QRQH RI ZKRP
average Americans. The had cardiovascular disease at the
experts looked at genetics, start of the study. Those who got
geography and so forth, yet their vitamin K by eating lots of
nothing explained why the green leafy vegetables did not
inhabitants of Rosetto were fare better than the general pop-
“outliers,” that is, statistical ulation but those who got their
anomalies. They tended not vitamin K by eating the forbid-
to be magically thin, in fact den foods like egg yolks, cheese,
were quite often obese. They animal fats and goose liver had
didn’t exercise much either. substantially reduced incidence
Then the investigators looked of cardiovascular disease (Nutr
at diet. People in Rosetto ate Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2009
a lot of lard. They piled pep- Feb 28, epub). Commenting on
peroni, sausage, salami and the research, Dr. Leon Schurgers
VRPHWLPHV HJJV RQ WKHLU SL]]DV $QG WKH\ DWH ODUG 2YHU IURP WKH 8QLYHUVLW\ RI 0DDVWULFKW VDLG ³7KLV VWXG\ FRQ¿UPV
percent of their caloric intake was from saturated fat. And RXU ¿QGLQJV LQ WKH 5RWWHUGDP VWXG\ VKRZLQJ WKDW LQFUHDVHG
they ate lard. Of course, good dieticians can’t even say the vitamin K strongly reduced the risk of coronary heart dis-
2
word “lard” without clutching their chests in pain. So they ease.” Unfortunately, the researchers can’t seem to wrap their
concluded with perfect political correctness that diet was heads around the fact that it is the fatty animal foods that
QRW D IDFWRU HLWKHU 2I FRXUVH WKRVH ZKR KDYH VRPH VFLHQWL¿F protect us against heart disease. Instead they are calling for
background in the subject of fat would know that in the U.S., vitamin K supplementation. According to Gerrie-Cor Gast,
from 1920 to 1960, heart disease skyrocketed while animal fat lead author of the study, “Vitamin K might be, for instance,
2
consumption (especially lard consumption) dropped equally more relevant in the form of a supplement or in lowfat dairy”
drastically (USDA-HNI), not to mention many other studies (www.nutraingredients.com, February 12, 2009).
which contradict the notion that animal fats cause heart dis-
SUMMER 2009 Wise Traditions 11