The crux of the Cure is our
anti-inflammatory and nutrient-rich whole foods diet
Seven Steps to Gain
Health and Lose Weight
by Ivy Larson
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Seven
years ago I ate like most Americans. In other words, overly-processed
foods took center stage in my diet. I liked to eat goodies such as
pop-tarts for breakfast, pretzels and soda for a snack and fast food for
lunch. Dinner was hit or miss and could sometimes be as atrocious as
sugary cereal, ice cream and crackers. Not only was I eating a terribly
unbalanced, nutrient-poor diet but little did I know I was also eating
foods that dramatically increased systemic inflammation within my body.
I was only twenty-two years old and had enjoyed great health my entire
life and to be honest I was not overly concerned with subjects as
“boring” as nutrition. Ironically, I was a health fitness instructor
certified with the American College of Sports Medicine. I looked fit and
trim thanks to hours of vigorous exercise a week. Unfortunately, I soon
learned outward appearance was not the only mark of good health.
It was the summer of 1998 when my well-being took a sharp turn for the
worse. I began having terrible bladder problems, including incontinence,
bladder infections, and urgency and frequency. Things got progressively
worse. My right leg became numb and I lost considerable strength in my
right hip-flexor, making it difficult to lift my leg, much less teach
exercise classes. One night I couldn’t go to the bathroom at all; I
ended up in the emergency room and left wearing a catheter. By this time
I knew something was terribly wrong. I traveled to the University of
Miami and after extensive testing I ultimately received a disheartening
diagnosis. It took my neurologist less than fifteen seconds to say the
words “You have multiple sclerosis” but with one 4-word sentence my life
was forever changed.
While the bad news was hard to swallow I was given hope
that I could greatly improve my health by adhering to a program of
lifestyle modification, which included a major dietary overhaul. I
collaborated with my husband, Andrew Larson, M.D., a general surgeon and
together we began researching nutrition for the management of multiple
sclerosis. My health greatly improved with my change in lifestyle and
today I am in remission without ever needing to take any of the
disease-modifying drugs used to treat multiple sclerosis.
As
my husband and I continued to study nutrition it soon became apparent
the research overlapped and by combining a variety of lifestyle
approaches at least ten chronic and prevalent diseases could all be
improved. We put our research together into what is now a book titled
The Gold Coast Cure: The 5-Week Health and Body Makeover (HCI Books)
targeting obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, asthma, allergies,
arthritis, vascular dementia, fibromyaglia, osteoporosis, and of course
multiple sclerosis. While results can be seen in as little as five
weeks, the Cure is a plan to be followed for life.
The crux of the Cure is our anti-inflammatory and nutrient-rich whole
foods diet. Furthermore, this diet is not low fat, low carb or even low
calorie. It all sounds just too good to be true but science now proves
it doesn’t take deprivation dieting or extreme measures to gain health
and lose weight. On the Gold Coast Cure you do not need to eliminate
food groups or limit portion size as long as you learn how to break the
following 7 deadly dietary habits of modern society:
-
Eating too Many Empty Calorie Carbohydrates: The only
empty calorie carbohydrates you need to avoid are foods made with
refined flour (also called enriched flour, bleached flour or wheat
flour), sugar (also called high fructose corn syrup) and white rice. All
other carbohydrates are healthy (potatoes, corn, whole grain bread,
whole wheat pasta, beans, all fruits, all vegetables, brown rice,
oatmeal, etc.)
-
Eating too Much Saturated Fat: Saturated fat is found in
animal products and should be eaten in moderation. Choose organic
low-fat dairy, organic and lean cuts of chicken and beef, and use butter
in moderation. Limit saturated fat to no more than 15 grams a day.
-
Eating too Many Trans Fats: Completely avoid all fried
foods as well as foods made with hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated
oils, margarine and vegetable shortening.
-
Eating too Little Essential Fat: Increase your intake of
foods rich in omega-3 essential fats such as fish, flaxseeds, flaxseed
oil, walnuts, walnut oil and expeller-pressed canola oil. Increase your
intake of foods rich in omega-6 essential fats such as edemame beans,
nuts, seeds, all-natural nut and seed butters, tofu, and wheat germ.
-
Eating too Little Fiber: Read the back of the nutrition
label and make sure all carbohydrate-based foods you eat contain at
least 2-3 grams of fiber per 25 grams of carbohydrate. Foods naturally
rich in fiber include fruits, vegetables, corn, beans, legumes, whole
grains, soybeans, and potatoes with the skins on.
-
Eating too Few Micronutrients: Increase your intake of
all fruits and vegetables.
-
Eating too Much Processed Vegetable Oil: Eliminate
overly-processed nutrient poor oils such as corn oil and “pure”
vegetable oil and instead choose oils rich in antioxidants (such as
extra virgin olive oil or avocado oil) or essential fats (such as walnut
oil or flaxseed oil)
 Ivy Larson is co-author of
The Gold Coast Cure: The 5-Week Health & Body Makeover published by
HCI. You can learn more about Ivy’s new book by visiting:
http://www.goldcoastcure.com
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