Raymond Gray2 said:I think there's a misunderstanding here. I wasn't talking about additives or whatever you guys jumped to—I meant that people just eat the wrong stuff and they eat way too much of it, which I honestly believe is the root cause of modern diseases... Not even touching on additives, emulsifiers, preservatives, and all that junk.
We’re eating way too much meat and protein in general, which we don't even know is harmful in massive amounts, let alone unnecessary! An adult really only needs a few grams a day, yet people are slamming 200g or more! And that’s not just from meat; it’s through milk, cheese, and all that, too.
There's also way too much white flour and sugar—which is incredibly damaging—yet people barely touch fruit or veggies... Fruit usually just ends up as a dessert.
That's what I meant.
Plus, I used myself as an example: by cutting back on meat, sugar, and white bread to a minimum, I managed to get my high blood pressure under control. Modern medicine doesn't have a real answer for this—some call it "essential" hypertension. They claim the cause is unknown... But then why don't people living closer to nature with sparse diets deal with blood pressure issues? (Like in the Andamos, the Caucasus, or somewhere in Africa) Nobody mentions how important the GI (glycemic index) is either! Someone once told me vegetarians get high blood pressure too... Well, if they aren't eating meat, maybe they're overdoing the starches and proteins that spike blood sugar—and then insulin kicks in, which also raises blood pressure... in case you didn't know. Then you've got to factor in the lack of movement and not drinking enough water. That's just as vital for blood pressure.
Look, I'm no expert, I admit that—but I listen to people who experiment on themselves and make discoveries that modern medicine ignores or refuses to acknowledge... I'm skeptical of the medical establishment and doctors who just hand out pills left and right (I'm speaking from my own experience and my whole family's).
That's a pretty bold claim, and honestly, it doesn't hold water. Diet definitely influences certain diseases, but you're nowhere near capturing the role it actually plays. As for the points you highlighted, we could go on forever. We don't know everything about hypertension, but we certainly know more than you think, and any decent, responsible doctor will tell a patient to modify their lifestyle to lower their pressure before jumping straight to meds. For instance, a "healthy" diet avoiding saturated fats and loading up on fruits and veggies
= a drop in systolic pressure of 8-14 mmHg, keeping salt intake below 100 mmol/L
= a drop in systolic pressure of 2-8 mmHg, doing aerobic exercise for half an hour a few times a week
= a drop in systolic pressure of 4-9 mmHg, cutting back on alcohol if you drink heavily
= a drop in systolic pressure of 2-4 mmHg, or reducing body weight back to a normal BMI
= a drop in systolic pressure of 5-20 mmHg per 10 kg lost .
By the way, insulin doesn't raise blood pressure. There are multi-factorial conditions that cause peripheral tissue insulin sensitivity to drop, requiring higher levels of insulin in the blood to maintain normal function. Since those conditions also drive atherosclerosis and contribute to rising blood pressure, people often jump to the wrong conclusion that insulin directly causes high blood pressure, when it's really just a bystander. If anything, to add a bit of irony, there are hormones that act
opposite to insulin that actually raise arterial pressure (like adrenaline or corticosteroids...).
And being skeptical of the medical system and doctors who blindly prescribe meds is a respectable stance, provided that criticism is backed up by actual arguments.👍 .
