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January 1, 2000 By Sally Fallon and Mary G. Enig, PhD When Dr. Weston Price studied native diets in the 1930’s he found that butter was a staple in the diets of many supremely healthy peoples. Isolated Swiss villagers placed a bowl of butter on their church altars, set a wick in it, and let it burn throughout the year as a sign of divinity in the butter. Arab groups also put a high value on butter, especially deep yellow-orange butter from livestock feeding on green grass in the spring and fall. American folk wisdom recognized that children raised on butter were robust and sturdy; but that children given skim milk during their growing years were pale and thin, with “pinched” faces. Does butter cause disease? On the contrary, butter protects us against many diseases. Read more here

Dariush Mozaffarian, Irwin Rosenberg, Ricardo Uauy Key messages • Modern nutrition science is young: It is less than one century since the first vitamin was isolated in 1926 • The first half of the 20th century focused on the discovery, isolation, and synthesis of essential micronutrients and their role in deficiency diseases • This created strong precedent for reductionist, nutrient focused approaches for dietary research, guidelines, and policy to address malnutrition • This reductionist approach was extended to address the rise in diet related non-communicable diseases— eg, focusing on total fat, saturated fat, or sugar rather than overall diet quality • Recent advances in nutrition science have shown that foods and diet patterns, rather than nutrient focused metrics, explain many effects of diet on non communicable disease • Lower income countries are recognising a growing “double burden” (combined undernutrition and noncommunicable disease) • Nutrition policy should prioritise food based dietary targets, public communication of trusted science, and integrated policy, investment, and cultural strategies to create systems level change across multiple organisations and environments Read more here

Marion G. Volk Abstract The “lipid hypothesis” is the basis for much of the contemporary diet advice and drug therapy aimed at preventing coronary heart disease (CHD), and was developed from a sequential association of dietary lipids, cholesterol, and CHD nearly 100 years ago. The lipid hypothesis considers pathological changes that relate to the end stage of the complex chronic condition summarized as CHD, not to its genesis. Ongoing research provides only inconclusive evidence of the effects of modification of total, saturated, monounsaturated, or polyunsaturated fats on cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. 3-Hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase inhibitors or “statins,” the highest selling drugs in medical history, may provide evidence that the lipid hypothesis is based on erroneous assumptions, since some of the mechanisms of action of statins seem to be independent of cholesterol reduction. This article assesses the methodology and assumptions underlying the early studies that gave rise to the current assumption of a causal relationship between dietary fat consumption and CHD. It argues that flaws in methodology have led to inaccurate and highly debatable conclusions. It assesses research supporting criticism of these early studies and considers other factors that may influence CHD. It offers alternative interpretations of the use of statins in controlling CHD. Finally, it provides an historical context suggesting different causes of CHD that have no relation to fat intake. (Altern Med Rev 2007;12(3):228-245) Read more here

J. J. Matte , M. Britten , C. L. Girard Animal Frontiers, Volume 4, Issue 2, April 2014, Pages 32–37, https://doi.org/10.2527/af.2014-0012 Published: 01 April 2014 Abstract Among animal products, those from ruminants are particularly rich in vitamin B12, which is naturally synthesized by the ruminal microflora and transferred to milk. Concentrations of vitamin B12 in milk vary considerably and are affected by diet. Dairy products retain, in general, a major part of the vitamin B12 naturally present in milk, some processing conditions may even add to the basal level by production of vitamin B12 from propionic bacterium in Swiss-type cheeses. Intestinal bioavailability of vitamin B12 from milk, regardless of the technological process (raw, pasteurized, or microfiltered) is greater than the synthetic form used in supplements. Read article here

Sylvia M. S. Chungchunlam & Paul J. Moughan Recent international reports suggest that some forms of animal food production may be environmentally unsustainable, and that the current consumption of animal-sourced foods should be lowered in favor of plant-based foods (Adesogan et al. Citation2020 ; Beal et al. Citation2023 ; FAO et al. Citation2020 ; Pimentel and Pimentel Citation2003 ; Springmann et al. Citation2018 ; WHO and FAO Citation2019 ; Willett et al. Citation2019 ). However, the nutritional quality of animal- and plant-sourced foods must be considered in the formulation of affordable, sustainable dietary patterns (Ambikapathi et al. Citation2022 ; FAO et al. Citation2020 ; Herforth et al. Citation2020 ; Hirvonen et al. Citation2020 ; Springmann et al. Citation2018 ). Our previously reported modeling studies, using Linear Programming, showed that dietary patterns that met the recommended minimum intake requirements for essential nutrients of an average adult in the United States of America or New Zealand, formulated at the lowest dietary cost, relied on foods sourced from both plants and animals (Chungchunlam et al. Citation2020 , Chungchunlam, Garrick, and Moughan Citation2021 ). Modeled diets that included animal-sourced foods were relatively 30 to 45% cheaper than modeled diets that consisted exclusively of plant-based foods, and the prices of animal-sourced foods had to be increased by two to eleven times to be excluded from the least-cost dietary patterns. It was also highlighted that the first-limiting nutrients for adults in mixed modeled diets were not the macronutrients but rather mostly the vitamins and minerals, particularly vitamin A, B group vitamins, calcium, iron, potassium, and zinc (Chungchunlam et al. Citation2020 , Chungchunlam, Garrick, and Moughan Citation2021 ). While the amount and form of essential nutrients may differ among their main dietary sources, their inherent bioavailability is often overlooked. These essential nutrients generally occur in animal-derived foods in higher concentrations and apparently with greater bioavailability, compared to plant-based foods (Adesogan et al. Citation2020 ; Murphy and Allen Citation2003 ). However, there is a paucity of published data on the comparison of the overall availability of vitamins and minerals between animal- and plant-sourced foods. The bioavailability of minerals and trace elements will be the subject of a future review from our research group. This review focuses on the bioavailability of vitamins. Read more here

The World Health Organization ( WHO ) defines social determinants of health ( SDH ) as “non-medical factors that influence health outcomes.” SDH account for 30%–55% of health outcomes ( WHO 2024c). Access to education, contraception, nutrition, sanitation, the internet, better living and working conditions, etc, improve health outcomes for families and communities. Policymaking should transcend politics, caste, gender, religion, class, mythology, bias, conflict of interest, etc, and be grounded in evidence. This paper examines anaemia in India—its prevalence, its effects, possible solutions and gaps in policymaking with a particular focus on its social determinants. What Is Nutritional Anaemia? Iron deficiency is estimated to be responsible for half of all anaemia globally and most of this is due to insufficient dietary intake. Other causes of anaemia include genetic conditions, infections, inflammation, gynaecologic and obstetric conditions, chronic or sudden blood loss, altered metabolism, etc. The quality of red blood cells ( RBC ) can worsen due to medications, long-term chronic disease, bone marrow disease, etc. In India, low consumption of iron-rich foods as well as the presence of inhibitors such as tannins and phytates/phytins in predominantly cereal-based diets is an important cause of iron deficiency anaemia. Iron in food is available in two forms: heme from animal sources and non-heme from both plant and animal sources. Although whole grains, millets, legumes, nuts, vegetables and green leafy vegetables have fair amounts of iron, the absorption is usually low. Unlike ruminants, humans lack the enzyme phytase that digests phytin, which is an inhibitor of absorption in plant-source foods.  The absorption of non-heme iron from plant food is around 2%–10% depending on the presence of inhibitors and enhancers, while approximately 25% iron in meat-containing foods is absorbed (Gopalan et al 2021; Piskin et al 2022). The absorption of non-heme iron is enhanced by ascorbic acid, meat, fermented vegetables, soya sauce and inhibited by phytates (in bran, oats, unpolished rice, cocoa, peas), iron-binding phenolic compounds (tea, coffee, red wines, cocoa, etc), calcium (milk, cheese) and soya protein ( FAO 2001). Vitamin C or ascorbic acid, present in citrus fruits, guava, amla, etc, enhances the absorption of iron from foods and increases the mobilisation of iron from stores (Piskin et al 2022).  Studies have shown that meat, poultry and organ meat contain highly bioavailable heme iron and also increase the absorption of non-heme iron from vegetarian meals. In addition to the more bioavailable heme iron, beef contains superior-quality proteins, fatty acids and several other nutrients essential for haemoglobin synthesis (Natekar et al 2022; Lynch et al 1989). Vegetarians need 1.8 times more iron than meat eaters. Women require more because of menstrual blood loss ( WHO 2023). Apart from iron deficiency, anaemia can be caused by deficiencies of other nutrients such as folate or folic acid, vitamin  B 12 (cobalamine), vitamins  A ,  B 2 (riboflavin),  B 6 (pyridoxine),  C ,  D and  E , and copper ( WHO 2017; Kraemer and Zimmermann 2007; Powers 2003; Santoro et al 2015; Sharif et al 2023). Vitamin  B 12, also called cobalamin, is widely present in animal food such as liver, eggs, milk, meat and fish. The absorption of this vitamin requires the presence of protein in the diet and its deficiency can prevent maturation of the  RBC s. Vegans and vegetarians are at particularly high risk of  B 12 deficiency. Its deficiency is common in areas where intake of meat, milk and dairy is low. Vitamin  B 12 levels increase progressively from vegans to lacto-ovo-vegetarians, to those who consume fish or some meat, to omnivores (Allen 2009).  Vitamin  A is present in a more bioavailable form in foods from animal sources such as whole milk, curd, egg, fish, meat, and especially liver. Plant sources in the form of β -carotene are green leafy vegetables and orange/yellow-coloured vegetables like carrots, yellow pumpkin, tomatoes, mango, papaya, etc. The conversion of β -carotene to vitamin  A in the intestine requires the presence of fat content in the meal, which may not always be the case in the diets of poor communities. The absorption of vitamin  A is reduced in children with worms or respiratory or gastrointestinal infections.  Anaemia can cause a range of non-specific symptoms such as fatigue, light-headedness, drowsiness, reduced concentration, irritability, loss of appetite, pica,1 and shortness of breath on exertion. These are classical symptoms often unfortunately dismissed or “managed” symptomatically by clinicians, with the generic advice to “eat properly.” Anaemic mothers are 30%–40% less likely to have favourable pregnancy outcomes and their infants are less likely to have normal iron reserves ( WHO 2024a). In pregnancy, it can contribute to cardiac failure during labour, haemorrhage during and after delivery, slower healing times and increased risk of infection (Suryanarayana et al 2017). Anaemia can contribute to preventable causes of child mortality such as low birth weights and premature births. Children with anaemia, especially from marginalised communities, can often get labelled as slow learners attributed more to their social backgrounds than their health.  Read more here

February 16, 2016 By Weston A Price Foundation In this fascinating article, E V McCollum, a leading scientist of his day, sought to determine the cause of tooth decay. He notes that vitamins A and D help build strong enamel and teeth, and may provide certain immune factors, facts which he tries to meld with the theory that bacteria present in the mouth are the cause of decay. The description of the diet for diabetics is especially interesting—in the days before insulin, the only way to treat diabetes was with a high-fat diet—and this diet also protected these patients against tooth decay. McCollum prescribes such a diet as a sure way to prevent cavities, not because the high-fat diet provides protective vitamins, but because fats “coat the teeth” and thus protect them against bacteria! He also asserts, without evidence, that chewing helps strengthen the teeth. The article provides a good example of how even leading scientists have difficulty determining cause and effect. McCollum was a contemporary of Dr. Price. The article was published in Nature , January 25, 1941, Volume 147, pages 104-108. The carious lesion in a tooth is caused by acid decomposition of the enamel, and afterwards the dentine, associated with proteolytic destruction of the organic substance of the tooth. Caries of the teeth is restricted to man and other animals which eat liberally of carbohydrate-containing foods. Carnivorous man and animals do not suffer from this disease. Dental caries does not attack the surfaces of teeth indiscriminately, but occurs only at such sites as favour the lodgment of food residues, as in pits or fissures, or on surfaces of the enamel which harbor mucinous plaques. In such sites acid is formed by fermentation of carbohydrate by micro-organisms, and is protected against being washed away by saliva or by neutralization by salivary alkalinity. Read more here