The China Study - a False Book China Study, Diet, weigh Loss, long term Health
The China Study (2006) caused quite a stir, at least among those interested in vegetarian diets.
This book is often cited by proponents of vegetarian diets as being a definitive study and guide as to the superiority of vegetarianism. However, upon careful review of this book, it is no such thing. I would like to comment on the book in this spirit. THE BENEFITS OF VEGETARIAN DIETS The author of the China Study rightly points out some advantages of vegetarian diets. They tend to be higher in fiber and generally higher in fresh fruits and vegetables. They also tend to be higher in some vitamins, such as vitamin C and E. Eating less fat, junk food and even less meat is also beneficial for some people, especially those with weak digestion, food allergies, iron toxicity and other bowel problems. T hese are the main benefits of vegetarian regimens, in my experience with thousands of American and European clients. PROBLEMS WITH VEGETARIAN DIETS The author of the China Study does not balance the positive information about vegetarian diets with most of the disadvantages and serious problems that I find associated with them. Here are just a few: HIGH IN COPPER This may not seem to be important, but it is critically important today when most people are already extremely toxic with copper. LOW IN ZINC This is also a very serious and almost universal nutritional imbalance already, and vegetarian diets tend to make it much worse. The main foods that contain zinc are meats. TOO HIGH IN CARBOHYDRATES This applies especially to vegan diets that do not contain eggs or dairy products. The remaining foods available are mainly high in carbohydrates, such as grains and beans. Most people already eat too many of these foods, so they become even more imbalanced and malnourished, even if the quality of the food is excellent. LOW IN PROTEIN This is not necessary, but often occurs with vegetarian and especially vegan diets. There are simply many fewer protein foods to choose from, so people tend to live on more pasta, bread, grains, fruits, and other non-protein foods. POOR QUALITY PROTEINS Most vegetarian proteins do not seem to nourish the body nearly as well as does meat, eggs, and possibly raw dairy products. Most vegetarians, however, exist on more soy protein, nuts and seeds, and some protein from grains. This is not as good for one’s health and causes low phosphorus readings on hair tests, telling us that these proteins do not rebuild the body as well. VERY LOW IN THE ESSENTIAL SULFUR-BEARING AMINO ACIDS SUCH AS TAURINE, CYSTEINE, CARNITINE AND METHIONINE This is a very serious problem with vegetarian diets, perhaps one of the worst. These amino acids are essential for liver detoxification of the heavy metals and of all toxic chemicals as well. No matter how clean the diet, without them the body cannot remove toxins as well, and this shortens the lifespan in all cases, in my experience. EXTREMELY LOW IN VITAMIN D This is another critical problem today. Most vitamin D comes from fish oils, and perhaps a little from organic, raw dairy products, though not enough for most people. The sun, meanwhile, is not providing enough vitamin D, even if you sit in it all day long. EXTREMELY LOW IN OMEGA-3 FATTY ACIDS This is another critical deficiency, although this can be corrected by adding at least two tablespoons of ground flax seed to the diet every day. OFTEN LOW IN B-COMPLEX VITAMINS Many people obtain the bulk of their B-complex vitamins from meats, which are rich sources, along with eggs. This problem with vegetarian diets is quite harmful and makes them particularly unsuitable for most people today, especially those of the white or Caucasian race. Orientals such as the Chinese seem to need less B-complex and zinc, for which reason they have been vegetarian-oriented people for thousands of years. The author of the China Study bases a lot of his work on a study in China. However, comparing the needs of Chinese peasants to those of Americans is thus incorrect due to racial differences mentioned above. This is a serious flaw in the China Study, in my view. A much better book on this subject is by Weston Price, DDS, titled Nutrition And Physical Degeneration. He investigated not one race, but all races on planet earth. He found that meat-eating produced far better health, especially inter-generationally, something that Dr. Campbell did not investigate at all, but a most important subject and a subtle one. In other words, even if you feel better on a vegetarian regimen, how will your grandchildren fare on this diet? The answer was, not well at all. Dr. Price found that vegetarian diets lead to more birth defects, for example. This should not be surprising because zinc, for example, is critical to prevent birth defects, and is very deficient today in the Western world, in particular, in the soils and in the food supply. Low zinc impairs what is called genetic transcription, which is the production of all body proteins and enzymes from our genes. When this occurs, birth defects increase. VEGETARIANS MAKE THEIR BODIES TOO YIN (Too cold) Yin and yang are qualities of matter, including the human body. The concept is of primary importance in Chinese medicine. Yin roughly means cold, more watery and expanded. Yang roughly refers to more heat, more contracted and more dry. Most bodies are very yin today, and require a more yang type of diet. The foods that are most yang are meat and eggs, followed by the whole grains and cooked vegetables. This is a major reason why cooked vegetables are emphasized in nutritional balancing science. Raw foods, raw vegetables, nuts, seeds, beans and especially fruits are move yin, so they are much less desirable foods. FACTUAL ERRORS The China Study is also riddled with factual errors. I will point out just a few of the more glaring ones that must make one question the author’s competence level:
Another problem with The China Study is very little discussion of making wise food choices, whether among vegetables or meats. There is also little or no discussion of toxic metals, detoxification, metabolic types, retracing, pesticides, insecticides, drinking water as a health factor and other factors that are major parts of today’s nutrition picture. Instead, the author just focuses on vegetarianism, and with no balance at all. For these reasons, I found the China Study a very disappointing and deceptive book from a scientific and clinical perspective. I hope that readers will look at the book critically, and not just be taken in by its excellent and persuasive writing style. CAN VEGETARIANS BENEFIT FROM NUTRITIONAL BALANCING PROGRAM? If you are vegetarian and want to remain a vegetarian after reading this article, you can still benefit greatly from a nutritional balancing program. In fact, vegetarians can do very well on nutritional balancing programs. The program must be modified because several supplements contain animal quality products such as the glandular products. These are excellent, but can be eliminated. The food choices are limited, but this can be accommodated as well. So there is no problem in following a nutritional balancing program as a vegetarian, and we work with many very successfully, although it is not in line with optimal health. For a much more complete article on vegetarianism, read Vegetarianism on this website. Sources: China Study, A False Book by Dr. Lawrence Wilson
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