Among modern hunter-gatherers, the percentages of total protein and fat have been found to vary from 36 percent to 97 percent, with total carbohydrates varying from three percent to 64 percent – and the people at both “extremes” are equally disease-free.
– Jonathan V. Wright, MD

Beyond Atkins: The Gittleman approach
Ann Louise Gittleman is a nutritionist who has studied with some of the top researchers in the field of nutrition. She is author of over a dozen books, my favorite one being The Fat Flush Plan (McGraw-Hill, 2002).

One major difference between Ann Louise and Dr. Atkins is that Ann Louise emphasizes high-quality foods. The difference is huge. A diet high in essential fats is a healthy diet. One high in the fats found in meats is less healthy because toxins are stored in animals’ fat cells and animal fats contribute to increased inflammation.

Why buy organic?
There are convincing studies linking toxins to chronic diseases. Some pesticides act like synthetic estrogen, raising your risk for breast cancer. Other pesticides are known carcinogens and neurotoxins. Many of these contaminants, including heavy metals, are stored in your liver. As they increase, they can affect your health. Buy organically grown foods whenever you can find and afford them.

Wash any non-organic foods in a Clorox bath. That’s right, Clorox. No other bleach has been tested. I wrote about this technique in my first book, The Nutrition Detective (now out of print) in 1985. Ann Louise learned this also and explains how to remove pesticides, parasites, bacteria, and other contaminants from various foods in The Fat Flush Plan.

You can also find vegetable washes in health food stores. One that removes pesticides, waxes, dirt, and oil, is called Environne Fruit & Vegetable Wash (800-282-WASH).

Protein: How much and what kind?
You may be surprised to learn that an adult woman needs about 60 grams of protein a day — 20 at each meal. That’s a lot if you’re a vegetarian, or if you’re a meat-eater who has cereal or toast for breakfast. But when I increased my protein five years ago, I noticed increased energy and strength. Since many contaminants are stored in fat cells, the fats in meats are storage bins for health-destroying toxins. However, meats (including chicken and fish) are much higher in protein than soy and other legumes.

Quality protein
Like the old gray mare, the quality of protein just “ain’t what it used to be.” Once, clean and lean, it’s now fatty and laced with pesticides, antibiotics, hormones, mercury, and other toxic substances. Wild game contains 3.9 percent fat. Today’s beef and pork is 25-35 percent fat.

If you eat meat, buy grass-fed rather than the widely available grain-fed animals whenever possible. They’re lower in saturated fat and higher in essential fats (omega-3 and CLA). If you eat grain-fed meats, add more essential fats to your diet like fish oil and flax oil. Dozens of sources for grass-fed beef can be found in The Fat Flush Plan. If all you use is the resource section of this book — and you’ll use much more — it’s worth the cost.

Eating most chicken isn’t any better than eating grain-fed meat. In fact, I think it’s worse. Commercially grown chickens are overcrowded, diseased, and given high amounts of antibiotics and growth-stimulating hormones. Studies show that 30 percent of them have salmonella contamination, while more than 60 percent have campylobacter, a bacteria found in fecal material.