Technology can take us only so far—and it often doesn’t address the fundamental problem behind diabetes — Until one hundred years ago, carbohydrate restriction was the mainstay of treatment for diabetes, capable of alleviating the symptoms in adults with what we now call type 2 diabetes and prolonging the life of children with type 1 diabetes. The discovery in 1921 of insulin, a life-saving hormone for people…

This essay is adapted from an article in MedPage Today entitled: Let’s Focus More on What We Eat, Not How Much The First Law of Thermodynamics, formulated in the 1800s, says that energy can neither be created nor destroyed. …

The journal Science has published a short opinion essay on the “failure” of the Carbohydrate-Insulin Model of obesity (CIM) to explain the results of half a dozen experimental tests. This brings to at least a dozen the number of dismissive opinions in recent years, many by one or both of…

We reviewed over 100 studies and conclude that milk recommendations for Americans are not based in evidence — It’s perhaps the most widely advocated nutrition recommendation of the last half-century: For strong bones and overall health, consume three servings of reduced-fat milk a day. The USDA’s “ChooseMyPlate” dedicates a corner of their icon for milk and equivalent dairy products (Figure 1). Schools must offer fat-free or 1% low-fat…

A new, major study supports the “Carbohydrate Insulin Model” of obesity — The Problem Most people have trouble staying on a weight-loss program. Of those who stay on a program, most don’t lose much weight. Of those who do lose weight, most regain it in 1 or 2 years. These observations, first made in the 1950s, remain true today. It’s now time to question…

Our study in the journal Pediatrics is available here. An accompanying commentary (worth reading) is available here. And a NY Times article about our findings, with a patients’ perspective, is available here. The biggest challenge facing people with any form of diabetes, and especially type 1 (“juvenile”), is controlling blood…

A “Case Study” of Research on Sugar-Sweetened Beverages — The accompanying study in Public Health Nutrition is available here and a version of this blog is available here on the publisher’s website. Numerous reviews of the scientific literature show that when a food company funds a nutrition study, the conclusions are much more likely to favor the sponsor’s financial…

This article is adapted from my commentary in the journal Pediatrics, available here. The study on childhood obesity rates is available here. After 35 years of unremittingly bad news about childhood obesity, national data from earlier this decade suggested a plateau in overall prevalence and a statistically significant decline among…

According to the Carbohydrate-Insulin Model of Obesity (CIM), the processed carbohydrates that flooded our diet during the low-fat diet craze undermine our metabolism and drive weight gain. Put simply: Processed carbohydrates — think white bread, white rice, potato products, low -fat snacks — raise insulin more than any other food…