Eat the Yolks- Book Review

When it was first declared that eggs are bad for you, especially the yolks because they are high in cholesterol, it was all over the news. One could not avoid seeing this in headlines, in periodicals, magazines, and health columns in the newspapers. Everyone knows that eggs are bad for you right? Well did you hear about it when scientists gave eggs the green light? Probably not, and this is the problem. When shocking discoveries are made it is publicized far and wide, when they are disproved they come out as a quiet whimper.

Eat the Yolks: Discover Paleo, Fight Food Lies, and Reclaim Your Health by Liz Wolfe is an important book I came across while reading Lies My Doctor Told Me- by Dr. Ken Berry. The history of modern heart/food science is based on poorly conducted research, based on biased assumptions that fat is bad for you and eating loads of grains is good for you. A closer look at this history will show that it is tainted by an almost emotional and non-scientific fervor. Because this is a convenient "truth" for the processed food industries, these misconceptions have been promoted and even funded by companies with invested interests. This book considers this complex history in the light of the much longer history of what humans have always eaten, real food, real meat, and real fat. The story of how we came to believe that low fat, high carb food is a healthy alternative to the real, unprocessed, whole foods that humans have eaten up until recently should make you mad. We have been lied to.

Despite mountains of accumulated research showing that fat and meat should not be demonized but rather embraced, physicians and nutritionists still cling to these outdated beliefs and recommend a low fat, and therefore high carb diet. Wolf cites the modern research and addresses the fact that physicians are either ignorant of such findings or just reluctant to change their opinions. We think of science as being "objective" but the science that has led us here is anything but. Along with the almost religious fervor against fat, especially saturated fat, has come a sharp rise in heart disease, obesity, and diabetes. Grain heavy diets have made Americans fat and sick, not healthier.

Liz Wolfe is a proponent of the Paleo diet, suggesting that meat, fat, and vegetables are a natural human diet, and anything that comes from a box or a can is not. She also addresses the harmful effects of big factory farming, and the meat and dairy industries, as plant and animal products are better for us if they are treated well. She shares that she had a variety of health problems when she ate what "experts" have been saying we should eat, low fat, large amounts of grains, ect. Once she began to eat a diet high in fat, and avoid grains along with processed food, her skin cleared up, she lost weight, and many of her health problems went away. She covers some of the science behind this in a clear manner, and with a sense of humor. This book is accessible to the average person, and those with a science background may use it as a launching point to explore the studies she cites in greater detail.

In 2015 the American Heart Association declared cholesterol a nutrient that is not of concern. I bet you did not hear about that, but it was issued as a statement to the public. Not as sensational as headlines that say "eggs will kill you!" Not only are eggs healthy, so is cholesterol in general. Your doctor won't tell you that, probably because they themselves do not know. Keep in mind that just because someone is a physician, it does not make them a nutritionist or a scientist. They are prone to the same mistaken beliefs that the rest of us are, so it is up to the individual to consider the evidence presented to us by qualified experts. This book is a great starting point to lead us in the right direction.

Eat the Yolks

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