Cholesterol

[fruitsalad]

is 6 a high cholesterol level?

[Sqad]

woofy....interesting......medical research can produce whatever results you want.......;-)

It was questioned as to why Eskimos had low blood cholesterol levels despite having a diet of mainly "blubber" .....animal fat.
A team from Cambridge was sent and stayed for 3 months eating just whale fat and guess what?............they lowered their cholesterol levels.

[WELSHYORKIE]

Very interesting, Sqad but it's too bloody cold to go up there with the Inuit people!!

[Sqad]

Welshy...no!..no! no!....the custom of the Inuits is that the guest sleeps with the wife.

[woofgang]

sqad, did they ever work out why the cholesterol went down? I know at one time it was thought that folk like the Inuit have a genetic disposition to low cholesterol, and that possibly they had evolved that way to tolerate the diet; but if it works for visitors too then that can't be right.

[WELSHYORKIE]

Bloody hell, Sqad, why didn't you say so earlier? Where do I book?

[coccinelle]

Is a whale an animal or a fish?

[WELSHYORKIE]

mammal

[Mamyalynne]

Answer: The short answer: whales are not fish. Whales are mammals, just like you and me. All mammals are endothermic (commonly called warm-blooded), give birth to live young and nurse their young, breathe oxygen from air, and have hair (yes, even whales do!).
What Distinguishes Whales From Fish?

If you're still not convinced, here are some specific ways that whales differ from fish.
Swimming: Whales move their tails up-and-down, while fish move theirs from side-to-side (this causes the fish's whole body to undulate).
Breathing: Whales breathe through their blowholes, which are basically nostrils on the top of their heads. Fish take in oxygen from the water through their gills.
Birthing: Whales give birth to live young. Fish lay eggs.
Skin: Whales have smooth skin, while fish have scales.
Body heat: Whales are warm-blooded (endothermic), while fish are cold-blooded (ectothermic).

[coccinelle]

So the answer would be instead of putting people on statins; just give them whale fat!! It would be a lot cheaper and more ecological.

[Sqad]

coccinelle/woofy

Well a high fat low carb diet is the principle of the Atkin's diet...isn't it?

cocci...the team had difficulty in eating the whale fat as it had a foul smell and tasted bloody awful.......but they persevered.

[ladyalex]

Glad to have your approval, sqad.
And you don't hear me saying that to anybody much.

:-))

[Sqad]

ladyalex......credit where credit's due........;-)

[razza]

Not high,but not low enough.

[woofgang]

Sqad when you actually read the Atkins blurb, the diet is low carb, but not high fat. The suggestion is that you should eat fat because it is satisfying and that therefore you should want to eat less. The suggested daily amount of cheese for instance is a piece the size of a matchbox. Most of the intake should be lean protein. You don't have to remove the fat from a steak or the skin from a chicken piece but doing things like only eating the fat or the skin is not recommended on the diet.

[DaisyNonna]

Welsh, how did you manage that? I have repeatedly asked to be referred to a nutritionist and am always given the same leaflet and told to follow the government's guidelines. Grrr.

[DaisyNonna]

Woofgang, a piece of cheese the size of a matchbox? O bliss, o joy, o frabjous day. Told not to eat cheese.

[Canary42]

The medical profession is overwhelmingly influenced by commercial vested interests, and can not be trusted to give good independent advice.

[237SJ]

The matchbox size piece of cheese is just the WeightWatchers recommendation.

[woofgang]

Not just weight watchers, it's in Atkins too.

[society]

Thanks for your response, Sqad.

Good thread, interesting views.