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29 Kislev 5764 - December 24, 2003 | Mordecai Plaut, director Published Weekly
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Home and Family


Your Medical Questions Answered!
by Joseph B. Leibman, MD

Diplomate, Board Certification of Emergency Medicine

I should say a word about the recent New England Journal article on carbohydrates. This article made a splash and has made starches into the "bad boys." Starches are very filling and provide an instant energy source. They fill glycogen stores, which is quick energy when needed. Excess starches are stored as fat and that, as we know, is not good. Recently many have jumped on the bandwagon to condemn carbohydrates.

The study, while being published in the premier journal of medicine, was nevertheless poorly done. It could be true that they are bad, but the alternatives aren't great either. Fats are for sure bad and, while they are filling and tasty, they are hard to get rid of once absorbed as fat in the body. Proteins are complex and hard to digest -- excesses of those will be turned into fat as well. Seems like you can't win, but you can come close. Here are some ideas.

Limit intake of eggs and bread. Dairy products, lean meats, fruits and vegetables are great. Cutting things out completely will not be successful, but perhaps do with a little less. Reducing sugars will also help. You can flavor well with spices, fruit juices and if you need to fry, stir frying is the healthiest. A wok is a good investment, a deep fryer may not be, although this really depends on how you do it--a second in the deep fryer may be healthier than 5 minutes in the frying pan. Again this is if you must fry. Baking is much better.

While we are on the subject of eating, I would like to speak about eating disorders. One is Anorexia Nervosa, a disease of young women who think they are too fat and refuse to eat. These women can die of starvation. Bulimia is related, where overeating-binging is common followed by purging-vomiting. These are both very sad disorders and we will discuss them next week.

Write me in care of the Yated.

A message from GlaxoSmithKline, sponsor of this column. Lamactil is a very effective drug for seizures. While not a first line drug, it is very helpful in hard-to- control seizures, with very few side effects. Consider this - - it may allow epileptics to live normal lives.

 

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