FAQ-Miscellaneous

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• Cause of bird flu/protecting yourself
• Stephen Byrnes’ death
• Toxicity of statin drugs
• Dr. Price’s wording
• Diet to change underdeveloped face
• Testing blood levels of Vitamin D
• Native American diet
• Multiple Sclerosis and saturated fat
• Locating The Milk Book
• Snopes Article on House Bill 2974
• Was Weston Price a research director for the ADA
• Should well water be softened?
• Sugar in Kombucha tea
• Metabolic typing
• Source for azomite
• Colloidal silver
• WIC prohibitions
• cast iron cookware
• microwave
• pressure cookers
• copper cookware
• school lunches
• refrigerator temperature

Miscellaneous Questions

1. What is the cause of bird flu and what can we do to protect ourselves?
2. We don’t really have any answers although my guess is overcrowding in industrial bird facilities (yes, they have these in Asia also). The best protection is our diet, especially fermented foods like sauerkraut, and cod liver oil.
3. I was sad and discouraged to learn Stephen Byrnes died so young, even on this diet.
4. Stephen Byrnes had been under enormous stress for at least three years, including being hounded by the Hawaiian Department of Health and being cheated out of a lot of money. Also, Stephen was a very excitable person. Plus, we never will know just how good he was about following our dietary principles. Constant stress can do terrible things to a person, even one on the best of diets.
5. Where can I find the statement on the Japanese finding statin drugs to be toxic?
6. Coronary Heart Disease The Dietary Sense and Nonsense George V. Mann, ScD, MD Janus Publishing Company, London, England, 1993 This statement is on page 14: In the 1960s the Japanese discovered a substance in a mold that inhibits the in-vivo synthesis of cholesterol from simple precursors. . . But the Japanese found the substance (lovastatin) toxic in animal trials, and so they sold their process to Merck and Company in the United States. With remarkable and unexplained speed, the FDA approved the Merck drug now known as Mevacor.
7. I am not sure what is meant by this sentence on your site: “These primitives with their fine bodies, homogeneous reproduction…”
8. Another way that Price expressed this (and yes, these are his words) was that in primitive societies, all the men looked like brothers and all the women looked like sisters, even if they were not related. This is because the diet supported the full expression of the genetic potential.
9. My child has an underdeveloped face, can diet change that?
10. It is not clear how much can be done with diet alone; we recommend orthodontics to widen the palate. However with a good diet, you can reverse this in the next generation, and also ensure that your child has a healthy life, in spite of the underdeveloped face.

Q: On your website, Krispin Sullivan suggests that any vitamin D supplementation be accompanied by testing blood levels of D. This seems contrary to WAPF. Should I be concerned about vitamin D toxicity?

A: We do not agree with Krispin on this. See the clarification here. We will be addressing the issue of Vitamin D toxicity in the Fall 2006 issue of Wise Traditions.

Q: I have recently read an article claiming that Native Americans ate only plant foods and began eating game with the coming of white settlers. Please comment.

A: The Native Americans cultivated many plant foods, but to claim that the eating of game came with the advent of the white settlers is ridiculous. They ate everything available to them–not only plant foods but fish, shellfish, birds, reptiles, eggs and mammals. When they had little animal food, they had many health problems. See our article Guts and Grease: The Diet of Native Americans.

Q: In his book The Multiple Sclerosis Diet Book, Dr. Roy Laver Swank claims that saturated fats cause MS. Please comment.

A: Dr. Swank is absolutely wrong about saturated fats. They are very important for general health, especially the health of the nervous system. We have just received an interesting article by Mark Purdey on the causes of MS. He speculates that one factor is heavy metals, especially barium, in the absence of calcium, magnesium and sulphur. Here is the abstract. (Barium taken before abdominal x-rays is a real threat.)

http://www.medical-hypotheses.com/article/S0306-9877(04)00022-2/abstract

Q: How do I find William Douglass’ book, The Milk Book?

A: There are several versions: The Milk Book: The Milk of Human Kindness is not Pasteurized – Last Laugh Publisher, 1985. It was also published under that name by Second Opinion Publishers, Atlanta, 1985. Then Rhino Publisher using an ISBN 996263654X. Finally, it was published under the title, The Milk Book: How Science is Destroying Nature’s Most Perfect Food, ISBN 1885236042 and on www.bookfinder.com.

Q: I’m always concerned about the ill effects of mold or fungi since these are said to be a detriment to health.    If I see any mold in fermented foods should I discard it?

A: I wouldn’t worry about a small amount of mold that develops in fermented food.  It is harmless.  Just remove the moldy part from the product, carefully, using a spoon.

Q: From reading Price and Pottenger’s books, I know that some of the healthiest people we have found were the Eskimos and the Masai warriors, both of whom live primarily on high-fat animal food..  I have recently been reading Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease by Caldwell Esselsyn M.D. of the Cleveland clinic of medicine and “The China Study” by Dr. Colin Campbell Ph.D.  In these books they recommend a plant based diet exclusively. They require a diet of no more than 10% daily fat intake and that from plant sources.  They claim remarkable results in arresting the advance of heart disease in patients suffering from cardiac disease and in addition show that they have been able in many cases to reverse atherosclerosis. They have taken people with seriously clogged arteries and returned those arteries to the condition of a teenager.  Why are their results so at variance with your theories and with the experiences of people like Dr. Eates and Atkins. How is this explained?

A: These are important questions and we spend a good deal of time trying to correct the misinformation put out by folks like Esselsyn and Campbell, misinformation that causes people to turn away from healthy dietary principles. Campbell actually lies about the results of the China Study.  He did not find any benefits from a plant-based diet in the China study.  See the review of his book at http://www.westonaprice.org/book-reviews/the-china-study-by-t-colin-campbell/ and also my article about diet in China: http://www.westonaprice.org/health-topics/food-in-china-variety-and-monotony/ Regarding Esselsyn’s book, we reviewed this in the Summer 2008 issue of Wise Traditions. Here is a link regarding the problems of an animal-based diet. http://www.diseaseproof.com/archives/diet-myths-do-primitive-peoples-really-live-longer.html The study on the Eskimos was looking at modernized Eskimos–their health is abysmal. But before modernization, they enjoyed excellent health and considerable longevity. It is difficult to find reliable statistics on truly primitive Africans. But we do have studies of vegetarians and these show that they have a greater all-case death rate than non vegetarians.  For information, visit these links.

Q: I am concerned about my thyroid.  I was told that I am not getting enough iodine; it is present in unrefined salt and if I am not eating seafood I am certainly lacking in iodine.  I was also told that cruciferous veggies, even fermented, will hurt my thyroid.  Please respond.

A: In addition to seafood, butter is an excellent source of iodine.  Also meat, eggs, etc, are if there is iodine in the soil. Unrefined salt is actually a good source. Certain vegetables provide iodine, such as asparagus and artichokes. If you are concerned about getting enough, then use some seaweed flakes in soups, etc.  (You might want to do this if you live in a goiter belt.) The crucifers are fine if you don’t overdo and are getting adequate iodine in the diet.

1. I received an email from you about the House Bill 2974 on the proposed changes to our food supply.  Please comment on the following snopes article addressing your email: http://www.snopes.com/politics/business/organic.asp
2. The key points are: 1)  The alert deals with a different bill than the snopes article.  The alert is about HR 2749, not HR 875 2) The snopes report is mostly correct.  HR 875 would not have criminalized backyard gardens or organics, and the connection between DeLauro and Monsanto is very tenuous.  Our analysis of HR 875 and HR 2749 did not make those inaccurate claims. There was a lot of inaccurate information circulating the internet about HR 875.  But this is a different bill, and the alert was written by the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund after analysis of the bill by several attorneys.  You can read their full analysis, which includes references to the specific provisions of the bill, at http://www.farmtoconsumer.org/news/news-15june2009.htm. In fact, the snopes article on HR 875 identified the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund as a good source for understanding how the bill could impact small farmers.  This new bill, HR 2749, poses very significant problems for our small farmers and local food processors.  It should not be dismissed simply because some individuals circulated inaccurate information about a different bill earlier this year.”
3. Was Weston Price a research director for the ADA?
4. Price was head of research for the National Dental Association, which was eclipsed by the ADA when it was formed.  ADA promoted fluoride and amalgams and the NDA refused to do this.
5. We have well water which I like because it has good minerals and no fluoride added. However, we use a water softener because we were told that the well water has too many minerals that will clog up the pipes. I’m not sure that softened water is good to drink? What do you think?
6. We are not experts on water, but generally it is better to drink water containing minerals, especially magnesium.  Unless there are some toxic minerals that can be toxic in high amounts, like manganese, I would think the softener to be unnecessary (although nice for washing hair and clothes).
7. Is kombucha tea any more nutritious or medicinal when it is allowed to work until it is tart compared to stopping it when it is still slightly sweet? Is there more remaining sugar in it when it is a bit sweet rather than tart? Also, does the caloric content change as a result?
8. Yes, the more tart, the more nutritious, the more beneficial organic acids. If it is still sweet, that means there is some remaining sugar. The caloric count goes down; eventually the final product has about the same calories as vinegar.
9. Metabolic Typing – please comment on this.
10. This is a huge subject but we do discuss it in the article The Right Price, on our website. There is no doubt that there are different metabolic types, but my gripe with the MT folks is that they pretend to determine your MT with a simple question and answer, and then they give these different diets, all of which are bad diets.  They evoke the name of Weston Price without any understanding of his findings–none of the MT diets (Wolcott) are WAPF-friendly, they do not contain sufficient fat-soluble activators.  You can have a high carb diet and a low carb diet both conforming to Price’s principles, but the MT folks do not understand the principles. In the West, given our food preferences, it is easier to apply the WAPF principles with a high-fat, low-carb diet that includes plenty of nutrient-dense animal foods.   In India, they are not really vegetarians because the food is not sterile and there are huge amounts of insect parts and insect feces–very rich in B12–in the food–to look at it with a microscope is very revealing.  If they try to follow the same diet in the West, where the food is fumigated and sterilized, they get into trouble. And people in India are likely to be of a different “metabolic type.” In India, they are not obligate carnivores as a Native American would be, so they can make EPA and DHA out of the 18-carbon parent omega-3 fatty acids. (See Tripping Lightly Down the Prostglandin Pathways, on the website.) Remember also they do consume ghee and fermented dairy.   In Asia, they never consumed soy in large amounts until the American processors went over there–soy is about 1% of calories in the traditional Asian diet.  And they certainly are not vegetarians.  65% of calories in the Japanese diet comes from fish and in China, 65% of calories comes from pork. There are lots of lies going around about the Asian diet–like the lie that the people of Okanawa don’t eat much animal food.  They eat pork and fish daily, and they cook in lard.
11. What is a source for azomite?
12. wheatgrasskits.com (866) 948.4727
13. What is your opinion of colloidal silver for infections?
14. It might be OK to use the colloidal silver in emergencies, but people who use it all the time risk turning green literally and permanently.  Silver can cause toxic effects.  Better to use cod liver oil to fight against infections!  Some experts on metal toxicity even warn against using a silver spoon.
15. I just read in Nourishing Traditions that “Sprouting inactivates aflatoxins, potent carcinogens found in grains.”  Would you explain what aflatoxins are?
16. From the Wikipedia entry for aflatoxins:  Aflatoxins are naturally occurring mycotoxins that are produced by many species of Aspergillus, a fungus, most notably Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus. Aflatoxins are toxic and among the most carcinogenic substances known. Aflatoxin-producing members of Aspergillus are common and widespread in nature. They can colonize and contaminate grain before harvest or during storage. Host crops are particularly susceptible to infection by Aspergillus following prolonged exposure to a high humidity environment or damage from stressful conditions such as drought, a condition which lowers the barrier to entry. Genetically engineered grains are particularly prone to aflatoxins. The native habitat of Aspergillus is in soil, decaying vegetation, hay, and grains undergoing microbiological deterioration and it invades all types of organic substrates whenever conditions are favorable for its growth. Favorable conditions include high moisture content (at least 7%) and high temperature. Crops which are frequently affected include cereals (maize, sorghum, pearl millet, rice, wheat), oilseeds (peanut, soybean, sunflower, cotton), spices (chilli peppers, black pepper, coriander, turmeric, ginger), and tree nuts (almond, pistachio, walnut, coconut, brazil nut). The toxin can also be found in the milk of animals which are fed contaminated feed. Virtually all sources of commercial peanut butter in the United States contain minute quantities of aflatoxin,] but it is usually far below the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) recommended safe level.

Q: WIC supplemental nutrition programs in Nevada and elsewhere prohibit whole (and now 2% milk) from WIC nutritional choices. What is there to do about this deliberate spreading of misinformation to a vulnerable section of the public? Here is a link to the flyer: http://nevadawic.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/6175-MilkChange_EN_8_5x11_Handout_C1R1.pdf

A: It is awful! It will be hard to change the government policies, but we can educate people one by one on the importance of animal fats. With the money they save on WIC, or with food stamps, they can purchase butter and eggs.

 Q: I’ve read a lot about the great qualities of cast iron and am interested in trying it. However, there are a million different opinions regarding how to season cast iron. What is your opinion?

Do I really want a polymerized surface to cook on? They say it’s slicker than Teflon. I avoid Teflon. Since WAPF studies the traditional ways, I was wondering if somewhere in your archives there was information on seasoning cast iron pans. I would really like to hear what this organization has to say about the matter.

 

A: Cast iron has been in use for many centuries, so I think it is fine, as long as you are getting adequate fat-soluble vitamins to metabolize the extra iron.  I use a cast iron pan, and you can just season it with lard.

Q: The twentieth and last recommendation is “Do not use a microwave oven.” Unfortunately, no information is provided as to why the WAP Foundation believes microwave ovens are bad in any way. I would really like to know more about that, and I would appreciate if someone could explain the WAPF’s position on microwave ovens to me.

A: This has been on my to-do list for quite some time. The most important piece of info is this: in hospitals they are not allowed to heat the frozen mothers milk in the microwave. If they do, the babies die of kidney failure–so the microwaving produces hepto-toxins. We have an epidemic of kidney problems in this country–is the microwave partially to blame?? I certainly think it pays to err on the side of caution.

Q: Hi, this question keeps on coming up. I have a farmers market, and I run in circles of WAPF folks who more and more seem to be using pressure cookers. I was wondering whether you could check this out and let me know if you have and updated stance on it. I spoke with Sally about them years ago and I know she has been leary of them.

 

A: I don’t use one but others can if they want to. We really don’t know what it does to the food. I prefer a slow cooker

Q: I was thinking about purchasing a copper pan but unsure whether it is safe. Please let me know your thoughts. I am looking for a nonstick pan to make cheese crisps.

A: Not sure about copper–I do not think they are nonstick. Best is well seasoned cast iron.

Q: Hello, I’m a member in San Jose, CA, & am planning on contacting Sodexo who does our food at my school district. Every year their “ingredient guidelines” always state various low fat options like low fat milk, cheese and lean meats, along with various “whole grains” like whole wheat bread. I would think a national school food company would be a little more conscious of the research in childhood nutrition. I am wondering if you have some type of resource that’s set to go to send to a company like this, or a school board, or anyone associated with school food (or any child nutrition program)? I’m just looking for some articles, research summaries, etc. on what kids really need vs. what 20th century wisdom has said, all put into one place?

A: This would be a very good thing to have–we will put it on our list.  Meanwhile, there are articles on our website, and my book Nourishing Fats. But the food company is obliged to follow the USDA dietary guidelines, so you probably won’t get very far. A better use of your time is to convince parents to make their children’s own lunches.

Q: I always wondered what the optimal refrigerator temperature is that you would recommend?

A: I would recommend around 38 degrees F

 

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