The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth Series Two #4

Jonny Bowden, Ph.D., C.N.S., has created one of the most vital books on the health of your family you will ever find, The 150 Healthiest Food on Earth. The lavishly illustrated, 358-page weighty tome gives you more vital information on foods that can keep your family healthy than any other publication I have ever come across. And I am always on the look out. I have given the book to family members and often advise it for others. My goal here is pass on ideas that perhaps you did not previously know about.

I eat a few Macadamia nuts everyday. But it is wise to keep it to a few, as these great nuts are calorie loaded. As Jonny notes, Macadamias were among Dr. Robert Atkins’ favorite foods. The oil in Macadamia nuts is 80 monounsaturated fat, the main fat in the Mediterranean diet. Not even olive oil has as much monounsaturated, heart healthy fat. The Mediterranean diet has long been associated with lower levels of heart disease and cancer as well as to a longer lifespan. Jonny mentions the famous Lyon Diet Heart Study and its experience with monounsaturated fat and statin drugs. The study reported a great reduction in heart attack risk with monounsaturated fat versus statin drugs.

I have an ongoing issue with statin drugs and advise all patients receiving a prescription for a statin drug to ask their doctors this question: What is the event the doctor is seeking to prevent by prescribing a statin drug? Next you want your doctor to give you the NNT (number needed to treat). If the number is 100, for example, it means 100 patients would have to be given a specific drug to avoid 1 of the bad events looking to be avoided. And most drugs are loaded with potentially dangerous side effects. I have a strong bias against drugs, hospitals, and commercial food stores and have written extensively on all three.

Macadamia nuts contain calcium, phosphorous and magnesium (for strong bones and teeth). They also contain phytosterols, including beta-sitosterol, which, as Jonny highlights, has been shown to lower cholesterol and promote prostate health.