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Readings and musings

Notes on How Not to Die by Michael Greger

3/12/2019

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It took a long time, but I finally finished reading How Not to Die: Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease ​by Michael Greger, M.D. The biggest reason why it took so long is that I got really into it and took a ton of notes. That's the biggest sign that I enjoyed a book and learned a lot from it.

I liked the scientific rigor of the book and how the author (a physician) focused on reviewing the actual strong published medical literature and studies for the best recommendations on diet and lifestyle. The book ended with around 150 pages of citations, the vast majority of which were PubMed-style references to medical journals, and I liked how most of the studies seemed to be of high quality (double blind, randomized, placebo-controlled). I also liked the author's wit and personality injected throughout the book.

I'm already putting into practice a lot of the recommendations from the book. Truly integrating these lessons is going to take some work, but this gives you a very actionable path forward to introducing more vegetables, spices, and good dietary practices (moving more towards whole, plant-based foods).

My full notes on the book are below.

​Preface
Bodies heal themselves when stop eating artery clogging foods
nutritionfacts.org

Intro
Diet number one cause of disease
Physicians inadequately trained on nutrition
Risk for diseases change when you move countries and change diets
Best is unprocessed whole plant foods
Four key factors to reduce disease risk
Don’t smoke
Don’t be overweight
30 min of exercise per day
Eat right
Whole foods 
Refined grains, soda, and meat quickens telomere loss
Quality not quantity of food eaten is the key
Telomeres regrow through better food choices and reverse heart disease
Best diet is one that is whole food plant based diet
Discourages meat, dairy, eggs, processed foods
Treat the cause not the symptoms
Reimbursement more impactful than research
Non genetic favors like diet have much bigger impact on disease risk
Twin studies show that diet much more impactful than genes

1 how not to die from heart disease
Our top killer
No benefit from fish oil supplements or eating fatty fish
Plaque buildup starts in heart shoe in pregnant mom based on her diet
Trans fat and saturated fat worst
Eating animal products and processed junk the worst
Best target cholesterol under 150 and LDL under 70
Diet centered around whole plant food
Healthy diet reverses heart disease
Endotoxins from animal products
Vegan diet reverses angina
Brazil nuts improve cholesterol levels in just a single journal and remains a month later. Just eat 4 per month because have a lot of selenium. 

2 How not to die from lung diseases
Healthy diet protects against lung cancer
Load up on broccoli. Stops metasteses. 
Kale lowered bad cholesterol
Turmeric prevents cancer
Prenatal exposure to barbecue fumes affects birth size and head size and future cognitive development
Living next to restaurant increases cancer due to exhaust fumes of cooked food. Chinese restaurants worst effect. 
Bacon fumes worst
Asthma worse from diet based on animal products 
Supplements of vitamins don’t help but actual fruit and vegetable intake better

3 how not to die from brain diseases
High fiber diet reduces risks
Need to eat more potassium. Not potassium. Greens, beans, sweet potato best. 
Citrus great. Oranges best. 
8 hours of sleep best
Antioxidants. Those fruits like mangoes that don’t turn brown when exposed to air. Add lemons to fruit salad so doesn’t turn brown. 
bit.ly/antioxidantfoods
Clogged arteries lead to Alzheimer’s
Diet can trump genetics
More saturated fats worse for brain
Berries great for brain health
Saffron best helping spice against Alzheimer’s
Cooking with wet methods better than with dry
Aerobic exercise helps cognitive function

4 how not to die from digestive cancers
Turmeric very good
Fiber intake 

5 how not to die from infections
Sneeze into crook of elbow
Diet strengthens immune system
Kale
Broccoli
Vegetables activate immune system with each meal
Berries
Probiotics
Cardamom
Prebiotics are in beans and whole plant foods and greens
Exercise boosts immune system
Boosting immunity with mushrooms
Eggs and chicken contaminated with salmonella
Bladder and uti infections caused by E. coli from chicken

6 how not to die from diabetes
Insulin resistance
Higher fat intake leads to insulin resistance
Kids eating veggie diets grow taller
Saturated fats in animal foods
Legumes help prevent diabetes
Veggie diet better than caloric restriction
People feel better on plant based diet
Plants cure diabetes

7 how not to die from high blood pressure 
Over 120 is high blood pressure
Sodium too much dangerous
Low sodium diet reverses high blood pressure
Chicken breasts stuffed with salt in production
Each thing you eat should have less sodium than calories or grams of serving size
Dairy and meat raise blood pressures over vegan
Raw vegetables better than cooked
Ground flax seed very good
Beans, chickpeas, Lentils good
Hibiscus tea good
Beet juice
Arugula
Eat big salad daily

8 how not to die from liver diseases
Oatmeal, whole wheat, brown rice good
Make your own cranberry cocktail
Whole food better than supplement
Coffee helps

9 how not to die from blood cancers
Plant diet helps prevent
Real açaí berries actually good
Cloves, cinnamon, purple cabbage
Curcumin

10 how not to die from kidney disease
Animal protein more acidic than plant
Purple cabbage
Nitrosamines carcinogenic in hot dogs

11 how not to die from breast cancer
Vigorous exercise protects
Better melatonin control helps
Black beans good
Lots of fiber
Apple a day
Broccoli defends
Flax seeds
soybeans

12 how not to die for suicidal depression
Saffron

13 how not to die from prostate cancer
Milk harmful
Eggs linked to prostate progression
Eggs and poultry worst
Add cruciferous vegetables
Igf1

14 how not to die from Parkinson’s disease
Reduce dioxin intake
Dairy blocks benefits of berries
Coffee helps

15 how not to die from iatrogenic causes of doctors
Dietary antioxidants better than supplements
Salicylic acid

Part 2 introduction
Traffic light system
Daily dozen
iPhone app
Opportunity cost of eating one thing versus another
What’s healthier depends on compared to what
Nuts, soy foods, whole grains and less meat and dairy
Traffic light categories in pdf
Plant vs animal foods
Unprocessed vs processed foods
If it came from a plant, eat it. If it was made in a plant, don’t. 
Milling of wheat into white flour is processing it
Unprocessed means nothing bad added, nothing good taken away 
Just scale back unhealthy if can’t totally avoid
3 step method
Think of 3 green light meals u already enjoy
Whole grain pasta marinara sauce with veggies
Think of 3 meals that could be adapted to be green light
Switch from beef chili to 5 bean chili
Discover 3 new healthy options
Forksoverknives.com
Straightupfood.com
Happyheathylonglife.com
PCRM 21 day kick-start program online starts first of every month
Think of it as an experiment
What he eats
The more u eat healthy, the better it tastes
Greger Daily dozen
Dry erase board checklist on fridge
In supplemental pdf
5 glasses of beverages
Beans can be any legumes and lentils
Ground flax seeds
Turmeric, vinegar
90 minutes of moderate exercise or 40 minutes of intense
PB banana sandwich knocks off 4 boxes at once; easy to do several at a time
Frozen berries in freezer

Beans
Serving is around 0.5-1 cup
Legumes with every meal: beans, chickpeas, lentils
Soy
Miso soup
Edamame
English peas
Lentils. Sprouted lentils. 
Buy no salt added canned beans
Roasted chickpeas
Black bean brownies

Berries
½ cup per day
Pigment is the antioxidant so the more color the better
Strawberries, blackberries
Fructose only in added sugar bad and contributes to weight gain but not in fruits
Eating fruits with dessert or white bread slows release of insulin
Eating crazy high amount of fruit still doesn’t have adverse effects
Frozen berries as nutritious as natural
Soft serve ice cream made just in blender from frozen
Tart cherries
Goji berries helps with macular degeneration 
Black currants help with computer eye strain
Blending better than juicing

Other fruits 
Apples
Dates
Mango
Kiwi
Citrus and peel 

Cruciferous vegetables
Arugula
Cauliflower, broccoli
Sprinkle mustard powder to broccoli
Horseradish
Roasted cauliflower or broccoli
Kale chips
Purple or red cabbage
Broccoli sprouts and growing own veggies at home in kitchen 

Greens
Cup of raw or half cup of cooked
Spinach
Chlorophyll eaten by body combines with sunlight to create CoQ10
Black or Tuscan kale best
Balsamic glaze
Green smoothies: liquid, ripe fruit, greens
Fresh mint leaves
Pair greens with something u love like nuts
Put everything u eat on a bed of greens
Vinegar great for blood sugar control
Even consuming vinegar outside meals good
Apple cider vinegar
Salad days
Avoid alfalfa sprouts because lots of salmonella

Other vegetables
Oyster mushrooms
Sweet potatoes
Carrots
Boiled purple potatoes
Pair veggies with peanut butter and salad dressing dips
Kids and adults will eat more when call the fruits and veggies more fun names
The more parents eat veggies the more kids do
Cruciferous veggies plus garlic or onion 
Bell peppers best eaten raw
At least half your plate should be filled with vegetables

Flaxseeds
1 tablespoon ground per day
Better ground than oil
Dried fruit and nut bars calorie rich but don’t contribute to weight gain
Trail mix

Nuts and seeds
¼ cup of nuts or 2 tablespoons of butter
Blended nuts to make creamy sauces
Walnuts best
Peanut butter very good
Nuts boost metabolism
Pistachio nuts for sexual dysfunction
ED predicts heart problems
Eat lots of seeds

Herbs and spices
Quarter teaspoon turmeric per day plus other spices
Salt-free herbs and spices
Pick out foods with most vibrant colors
How to eat turmeric
Combine with some source of fat
Fresh turmeric root (¼ inch per day)
Grate onto other veggies
Can consume with soy
Good for lentil, brown rice
Supplements worse
Saffron
Fenugreek improves muscle strength
Cilantro
Cayenne pepper
Ginger powder in water relieves migraines and menstrual cramps
Lemon ginger apple juice or apple juice
Peppermint
Oregano and marjoram 
Cloves
Amla indian spice/fruit. Can buy the powder online or in indian stores. Capsule as last resort. 
Breakfast smoothie recipe in book with antioxidants
Garam masala
Spice mixes
Smoked paprika

Whole grains
3 servings per day
Lowers inflammation
Red quinoa better. More color better. Colored rice. 
8 checkmark pesto recipe
Popcorn
Bionature brand pasta
5:1 rule: grams of carbs to grams of fiber should be 5 or less
Apply same rule to cereals
Puffed cereal worse than non-puffed
Oats

Beverages
Teas
5 glasses tap water per day
Zero milk per day
Water is top drink
Drinking water improves cognitive performance
Add fruits and berries to water
Green tea best
Helps skin and spring allergies
If add lemon then white tea Better than green
1 minute steeping enough
Throw tea leaves into smoothie
Matcha powder
The best sweetener
Blackstrap molasses
Or date sugar
Erithritol best artificial one but only good for increasing consumption of green light foods
Hibiscus tea
Daily tea recipe
Rinse mouth with water after drinking anything sour
​
Exercise
90 minutes of moderate or 40 min of intense daily
Stand up more
Walking meetings
Standing and treadmill desks
Treat sore muscles with plants
Berries help

Conclusion
Addictions
Nutritionfacts.org

Appendix
vitamin b12 once per week 2500 mcg or 250 per day in cyanocobalamin form
vitamin d3 2,000 IU daily with largest meal of day
iodine in nori seaweed snacks/sheets but without too much added ingredients (mostly plain better; recipe in book for making own with ginger juice)
250 mg of Pollutant-Free (Yeast- or Algae- Derived) Long-Chain Omega-3s Daily
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