Can I Eat Carbs?
Despite the common misconception that starchy carbohydrates promote weight gain, carbohydrates are – gram for gram – lower in calories than either protein or fat.
In fact, most of the body’s energy comes from starches; however, those carbohydrates known as refined are linked to health disorders and the risk of diabetes. Examples of refined carbohydrates include white bread, white rice, white pasta and peeled potatoes.
Always opt for unrefined or whole-grain or brown rice, grains and pasta and potatoes in their skins, for excellent sources of energy, nutrition and fiber.
Lack of Omega 3s Leads to Weight Gain
NICE, France—Those who don’t want their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren to be overweight may want to add omega-3 supplements to their diet. A new study from the University of Nice Sophia Antipolis found eating too many omega-6 fatty acids and not enough omega-3s can lead to weight gain that can pass on through generations (J Lipid Res. 2010 Aug;51(8):2352-61).
The French researchers pointed out obesity has steadily increased over the last few decades. During this time, populations of industrialized Western countries have been exposed to diets rich in fat with a high content of the omega-6 linoleic acid and a low content of the omega-3 alpha-linolenic acid. Experts say human beings evolved on a diet with approximately a 1:1 ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 essential fatty acids (EFAs), whereas in Western diets, the ratio is 15:1 to 16.7:1.
In order to determine how this imbalance affects obesity, researchers fed male and female mice a high-fat diet (35 percent energy as fat) with the linoleic acid:a-linolenic acid ratio was 28 to 1. These mice mated randomly, and after breeding, maintained the same diet for successive generations.
While the mice’s genomes did not change, the offspring showed, over four generations, a gradual enhancement in fat mass due to combined hyperplasia (where the body builds extra cells in organs or tissue) and hypertrophy (an increase in the volume of an organ or tissue due to the enlargement of its cells) with no change in food intake.
Transgenerational changes in insulin-resistance and inflammation markers levels also occurred, singling an increased risk of type 2 diabetes.
The authors concluded, “Thus, under conditions of genome stability and with no change in the regimen over four generations, we show that a Western-like fat diet induces a gradual fat mass enhancement, in accordance with the increasing prevalence of obesity observed in humans.”
The Truth About Skim Milk
Contrary to common belief, even skim milk is not fat-free: 5% of skim milk’s calories come from fat. 
- A full 34% of the calories contained in partly skimmed of “2%” milk come from fat. It’s called 2% milk because the fat content makes up 2% of the total weight of the milk.
- Whole milk contains 48% fat by calories. (For comparison, lean hamburger runs about 64 percent fat by calories.)