Each meal or snack should contain a good portion of at least one kind of high fat/protein food from any of these categories: meats, poultry, dairy & cheese, eggs, nuts and seeds, coconut & coconut creams.
Avoid eating refined carbohydrate foods. This includes: white rice, white flour, breads, pastries, cookies, cakes, chips, pastas, sugars, honey, chocolates, candies, breakfast cereals, etc. If you eat any whole grains or starchy foods they should only be eaten in small portions to compliment a meal.
Only eat when hungry, and then eat enough to be satisfied. Overeating of any food will cause weight gain as your body will have to store any un-utilized energy from your food as fat. Match your intake with your activity level and overall calorie needs.
The most important thing to do is to learn to listen to your body. Take note of when you feel hungry soon after eating to know if you have had enough fat/protein, helping you feel full, or too many carbohydrates which will stimulate your hunger. Don't be afraid to experiment with quantities. Do what makes you feel the best and gives you the most sustained energy.
Choose organic produce whenever possible. Beware of conventionally grown fruits and vegetables as pesticides & herbicides cannot be completely washed off or removed by peeling. They are taken up by the roots into the plant itself from the ground water. The fruits and vegetables with the highest pesticide contents are: Peaches, Apples, Bell peppers, Celery, Nectarines and Strawberries. (In order from worst to least)
Eat plenty of green leafy vegetables, and cucumbers, zucchinni, beans, celery, broccoli, cauliflower, squash and peas.
Limit Fruit. It is very high in natural sugars and will spike your blood sugar resulting in stimulated hunger, and possible cravings. Berries, relatively unripe bananas and green apples or pears are the best options. If you do eat fruit, eat it in conjunction with something like cheese, yoghurt, peanut butter or other high fat/protein foods. You can get the nutrients you would be missing from limiting fruit by increasing your fresh vegetable intake instead.
Use good quality (preferably virgin) coconut oil, olive oil and (preferably raw) butter liberally when cooking, and as spreads, salad dressing, and on foods. The addition of these healthy fats are helpful to the immune system as they contain caprylic acid and lauric acid which have antimicrobial properties. Saturated fats are also important for providing energy and cholesterol which is the precursor for making hormones as well as aiding in optimal brain function and maintaining cell membranes.
Avoid all processed vegetable oils, hydrogenated oils (which produce trans fats), and margarine as they are heated, chemically treated and deodorized, producing a rancid and toxic product even before it is sold. These oils are damaging to the cell membranes in the body, and among other things, lead to cardiovascular disease and atherosclerosis. This includes corn oil, cottonseed, rapeseed, sunflower, soybean, canola oil, and any other seed or nut oil that is not cold pressed, virgin or extra virgin and stored in dark glass bottles.
Raw Organic full fat dairy products are the best. Pasteurization kills all the beneficial enzymes (including lactase needed to digest lactose) and reduces the vitamin content by approximately 50%. Healthy raw milk contains beneficial bacteria such as lactobacillus acidophilus that prevents bacterial infection in the milk.
When raw dairy products are not available, fermented (& organic) pasteurized dairy products are the second best option.(eg. Plain/natural yoghurts, kefirs, buttermilk, cheese) When possible choose un-pasteurized cheese such as Gruyere, Emmental and Comté. Always choose full fat varieties.
Avoid UHT and homogenized dairy products. Homogenizing reduces the size of the fat molecules to prevent them from separating in the milk but this causes an enzyme - Xanthine Oxidase (XO) also present in milk to bind to the tiny fat molecules and unnaturally pass into the bloodstream during digestion. The XO enzyme has been linked with atherosclerosis and heart disease. Ultra High Temperature (UHT) pasteurization damages the fragile milk proteins and produces other unhealthy and toxic substances in the milk.
Buy organic poultry (chicken & turkey) and eggs to avoid hormones, antibiotics and toxins from commercial feeding practices. The quality of animal products you eat is very important, organic is always best. Organic animals should be fed natural diets specific to species. eg. grass, hay etc. The difference between being healthy on a high fat/protein diet or leading to toxicity issues, digestive or endocrine disruptions is the quality of the products.
Beef, lamb and wild game are the best meats for high fat/protein diets. Pork is the least preferable meat due to pigs non-ruminant digestive systems and therefore the easier build up of toxins in their bodies, as well as common infection by the trichinella parasite - a very harmful parasite that can cause serious infection in humans. A recent study showed that approximately 50% of pork from eastern europe was infected.
Limit Fish and eliminate Shellfish intake. Most wild and farmed fish (Especially large fish like Tuna) and shellfish are contaminated with PCB's, dioxins and toxic heavy metals such as mercury. Farmed fish and shellfish are also fed unnatural diets often containing grains, chicken feaces, antibiotics and agricultural waste products and are more susceptible to infection with parasites and bacteria. Their fat composition is also lower in Omega 3's. Wild Alaskan Salmon and smaller species of wild fish are the safest options, consumed occasionaly. You could compensate for decreased fish consumption by taking a good quality, Mercury and PCB free Cod Liver Oil Supplement to provide essential Omega 3's as well as a good dose of Vitamins A, D and E.
Avoid Soy Products. Soy's original purpose as a cultivated plant was for nitrogen fixing used to fertilize the soil, not as a food. In Asia, soy products were traditionally only ever consumed after being altered through fermentation and then only in small quantities as condiments. Soy contains many anti-nutrients that negatively affect Calcium, Zinc, and Iron levels. Soy provides excessive amounts of Manganese and Fluoride that can lead to toxicity. Processed soy products also contain many heavy metals, especially Aluminium, Cadmium and Lead. High levels of Phytoestrogens in soy off balance the endocrine system and can lead to breast cancer in women and reduced fertility in men. Soy Products are goitrogenic - depressing thyroid function. They also contain haemagglutinin, a clot-promoting substance that causes red blood cells to clump together.
Avoid processed foods as they lack nutrients and are often full of sugars, preservatives and artificial ingredients. Many artificial colours, flavours and preservatives cause reactions in sensitive individuals. Limit intake of processed meats such as salamis, cold cuts etc. as they generally contain harmful nitrates. MSG (Monosodium Glutamate), Hydrolyzed vegetable proteins, "Natural Flavour", E621 - E635 are all flavour enhancers that should be avoided. (Almost all commercial chips, soup mixes, bouillon and instant meal mixes contain MSG) Chips and fried carbohydrate foods contain carcinogenic acrylamide substances and damaged fats.
Avoid Caffeinated beverages as much as possible. Caffeine depletes the body of magnesium, increases production of stress hormones and adrenalin which stresses the heart and excites the brain as well as having a laxative effect.
Avoid Aspartame, Sucralose, Saccharin, Acesulfame-K and other artificial sweeteners. They are all synthetic artificial sugars and break down in the body to form toxic substances that destroy brain neurons and have been linked with mental problems. Other healthy options include Stevia, Lo Han and Xylitol.
Avoid Teflon coated cookware. Teflon releases toxic fumes from the flourinated polymers that break down when heated, even at low heat *anything above 70 degrees allows the fumes to be released. Stainless steal, glass, cast iron or enamel are best.
Avoid Aluminium cookware, foil, canned drinks, antacids and anti-perspirant deodarants. Aluminium is a toxic metal that has been associated with headaches, Alhzheimers disease, and many other conditions as it builds up in the body disrupting normal function.
Avoid storing food in certain plastic containers. Certain plastics leach chemicals into foods. Avoid PVC (#3), Polystyrene (#6) and Polycarbonates (#7) which are known to leach carcinogenic dioxins, endocrine disrupting pthalates, Bisphenol A and toxic styrenes. As alternatives store food in glass or ceramic containers or paper/cardboard bags and boxes.
Regular exercise helps to optimize your body's performance. Exercise also lowers insulin levels, helps prevent cardiovascular disease, hormonal imbalances and offers benefits to the immune system.
Sleep is important not only for restoring energy, but also for controlling appetite and food cravings as it helps control blood sugar levels. Adequate deep sleep each night also helps the immune system function at its optimum and allows the body to repair and detoxify while increasing memory and mental function. Studies have shown that women are more prone to hormonal effects from lack of sleep, causing irritation, irrationality and other stressed hormonal responses.
**If you have a slow metabolism, low stomach acid, fat malabsorption issues, or low bile production then you are not advised to eat a high fat or protein diet until those issues are resolved. In these cases eating a high fat/protein diet can cause digestive discomfort and lead to other problems.
**The information provided in this article is the opinion of the author, based on scientific research. It is not intended to replace medical advice or treat, cure or prevent any illness.