Since Michael Smerconish was off this July 4th weekend, I idly flipped through the channels to see what else I might watch and landed on PBS. About this time of the year, in this area, the local PBS station has its fund drive: now, it seems, more dire than ever considering the cuts proposed by the current Administration. The presenter (they always have some well-known individual speaking on some topic connected with health, diet, fitness, top jazz, swing or popular musical groups of the past--after all, the largest section of the PBS audience consists of geezers, like myself) happened to be Dr. Mark Hyman hawking his ware, "Eat Fat, Get Thin." For those of you who are unfamiliar with the good doctor, Dr. Hyman is a very vocal proponent of the high fat, low carbohydrate (sugar) diet. I'm sure most of you are familiar with the so-called "Paleolithic Diet" (which is really a misnomer because when we separated from our ape-cousins a couple of million years ago, and for a long time afterwards, we were probably frugivores with whatever meat on the side, (i.e., road kill from other larger predators) that we could scavenge. Dr. Hyman proposes 40% of out diet should consist of good fat (butter, coconut oil, olive oil, etc.) and eating grass-fed beef and eggs are O.K.
I don't want to go into all of the details, here, but you get the idea. By the way, his book has numerous references and footnotes, Dr. Hyman is also with the Center of Functional Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic.
I have never trusted the high fat diet: I just felt that it was not only counter-intuitive, but it just didn't make sense in light of what we have hearing these past forty years about the evils of cholesterol and its associated with heart disease. Now it is a "food" substance connected with prostate cancer. So my diet for may years has been low in fat (I eat avocadoes, coconut milk and olive oil), with a medium amount of fruit, lots of vegetables and complex carbohydrates and an occasional bowl of noodles, Chinese or Italian--I love both. By the, the greatest anathema to Dr. Hyman is a sandwich which often mixes fat and carbohydrates--this is the only time when the saturated fat has a negative effect.
This diet of my has been a source of friction between my wife and me for many years. She accuses me of being "anal" when it comes to food ingredients and ruining her cooking (she is unable to follow the traditional recipes). But why am I burdening you with all of this? Well, although I have a low PSA, 0.04, and have been off meds--except Avodart-- for almost two years, a recent PET/CT scan revels numerous areas of inflammation as well as "spots". Yes, I have arthritis, fallen down landing on practically every part of my body, nevertheless, considering all of the supplements I take, I should be in a better place with regard to inflammation which seems to be the driver of about everything, disease-wise. Therefore, my question to everyone is: What kind of diet do you follow? If it's the so-called "balanced," diet forget it. Anyone really on a high fat diet? What kind of lab reports have you been getting? My oncologist and his entire office seem to be vegetarians. They are all thin, trim (actually, I am underweight). The literature on diet and cancer, as almost everything else on the subject, is confusing and often contradictory. Clarification, anyone?
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The more I read Patrick O'Shea's reports on the research literature here, the more I learn how complicated the subject of the right diet FOR PCa is. For instance, after I fell in love with coconut oil, it turned out that its fat is myristic acid, which apparently promotes PCa. So there's no published diet for us. We just have to stay tuned & pay attention. Although I may think more of fruits & veggies than Patrick. I'd like to hear more about good fats though. I've lost too much weight fighting PCa.
That's exactly why I have revisited the discussion. For example, although in the latest news coconut's position as a nutritional villain (it always has been in traditional thinking about saturated fat) has been reasserted, check the Internet, it is full of rebuttals and criticisms about the research behind the latest claims. The business of "stay tuned and pay attention" is part of the problem. Because by its nature, science must be open-ended and subject to disproof, staying tuned is almost impossible to do. This is why I ended my discussion with forget about "balanced diets" because that's where most of us wind up. We are very hesitant about taking an extreme position (vegetarian vs. Paleolithic, for example) for fear of finding out sometime in the near-distant future, that we took the wrong side. By "wrong side" I mean we could have been doing much more through diet to ameliorate our condition. This is the reason why I asked for lab test results. Even though this is anecdotal, nevertheless, it can be useful as a guide.
But none of the debate over coconut oil--which I had resolved in favor of the oil, especially the most tasty version that includes the skin in the middle--did what Patrick O'Shea, M.D., did here. He looked at the research on different fats & PCa. And myristic acid (which I imagine VERY few of us have heard of), the fat in coconut oil, came off as a PCa-promoter.
THAT'S what I'm talking about. I don't know anywhere besides this site where you get the kind of specific attention to peer-reviewed, published scientific research results about the relationships between PCa & specific foods, supplements, vitamins & beverages that Patrick gives us here. As to timeliness, Patrick can keep right up to the minute as new studies are reported, whereas books may be a year or two behind by the time they're published.
With the Internet, it's silly to rely on books for the latest in scientific research. First of all, although a book may be published in 2017, you can probably rest assured that practically all of the articles are from 2015, latest. Then, of course, by the time those articles were written up, after the research and peer-reviewed, you can knock off another year or two. Problem is that there is too much material out there, much of it mot read by our doctors. I often send my oncologist material I have taken from HealthUnlocked for his opinion or comments. Doctors simply don't have the time to read everything. That's why this website is so important: we are all research assistants!
Mercola discusses the major points he makes against the AHA study in his latest newsletter "Mercola: Take Control of Your Health" 07/05//17. Unfortunately, the URL is too long to fit within the confines of this box. He deals with the cherry-picking of data; biased research methods and incorrect and dishonest methodology.
Dr. Nasha Winter's recently published "The Metabolic Approach to Cancer" has a lot to say about the Ketogenic diet and other related things. Her clinic does an enormous amount of specialized diet-related blood tests, but it is also one of those places that doesn't take Medicare and thus removes itself as a possibility for many of us.
My husband Mike who's taken many different treatments has lost lots of weight fighting prostate cancer but luckily he takes zofran (tablet) 3 times a day Now he's able to eat again. It blocks acid in your tummy-it is for people who's getting radiation & chemo-otherwise he would NOT be able to eat-he's doing jevtana chemo now.
Sorry, I sent you my reply to another comment! Actually, I am able to eat but I don't eat the foods that would help me gain weight. I don't like to stuff myself at meals and I am usually not very hungry between meals when I will eat a piece of fruit or some yogurt. Thank you for your reply.
I'm glad to know about zofran for when I get to chemo, but I'm not quite there. For now, I eat lots of food & love to eat, but too little of the food is fattening to maintain my former, healthy adult weight.
Again, I have read about the ketogenic diet. One must be careful in not winding up with ketogenic acidosis. "A high ketone count in urine can indicate ketoacidosis, a potentially dangerous or even fatal condition that afflicts diabetics, according to Healthline. Ketones form when someone does not have enough insulin to burn glucose, causing his body to start burning fat instead. Ketones are a by-product of this fat burning," You do need some carbohydrates. You are correct. None of these nutrition-based physicians will not take medicare. It seems there are enough wealthy people in our population who are able to afford seeing them. Someone needs to monitor you.
Have you read the book Anti-Cancer: A New away of Life, by David Stevan-Schreiber? It available on Amazon.
Not only an incredible and inspiring life story - a physician and researcher diagnosed with brain cancer who was told he had 18-months to live and actually lived 18-YEARS - but also an indepth explanation of diet and the science behind it.
This is the best book I've found on the subject. Very practical, easy to read, with specific food groups recommended for various types of cancer, including PcA.
Also an interesting documentary that features Dr. Servan-Shreiber called The "C" Word. I watched it recently on Netflix - about 1/2 of the movie is about the good doctor.
Problem is that all of these guys have rational explanations of how diet and cancer interact: they all can't be right! However, I will look up author and book. Thanks for your reply.
Another interesting read is a cookbook by Michael Milken called The Taste for Living. He's the famous Wall Street billionaire executive who went to jail. Was released with terminal PcA over 20-years ago and is still living a vibrant and helpful life. His story is an inspiration, too. He is committed to helping lead in the fight to find a cure for PcA. And his cookbook has a lot of excellent recipes. Available on Amazon for about $4.
"Would you stop eating red meats and dairy products and switch to a largely vegetarian diet if you thought it would save your life? Financier Michael Milken did in 1993, after doctor’s diagnosed advanced prostate cancer and gave him 12 to 18 months to live. One of the most compelling points regarding Milken’s diagnosis, at age 46, is that it came only after he insisted on getting a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test. His doctor initially told Milken that he was too young to be at risk. “Humor me,” Milken said. Fortunately, his doctor did. As Milken notes, “Other than skin cancer, prostate cancer is the most common cancer in American men.” The American Cancer Society’s latest estimates for prostate cancer in the United States state that:
•About 240,890 new cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed this year.
•About 33,720 men will die of prostate cancer this year.
It’s also worth noting that about 1 man in 6 will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime. More than 2 million men in the United States who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer at some point are still alive today. Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in American men, behind only lung cancer, and about one man in 36 will die of prostate cancer.
Almost 20 years after his terminal diagnosis, Milken is living proof that early testing for PSA is a wise decision, and that a health-enhancing dietary change can be highly beneficial. Milken’s dramatic recovery, however, involved far more than eating primarily low-fat plant foods. His urologist, Stuart (Skip) Holden, MD, put him on androgen-deprivation therapy, which involved taking two pills three times a day, plus a monthly injection to deprive cancer cells of the male hormones they need to multiply. This therapy reduced his PSA levels over the course of several months to zero. Milken also chose to undergo eight weeks of radiation therapy. Subsequent scans showed the swelling in his lymph nodes had disappeared. His cancer was in remission and remains so to this day.
There’s more to his healing narrative, for Milken recognized that his prostate cancer may have developed as a result of a decades-long grueling work schedule, high stress levels, meat-heavy diet, and too little exercise. As a result, he began reading evidence-based medical research on how specific nutrients, exercise and other lifestyle modifications may help slow prostate cancer, and he started making adjustments based on the research he read.
For many years, I have wrestled with the diet concept. I have changed my diet many times. My wife is wonderful, she supports whatever diet I am on. I worked in research and development (electronics engineering) for many years and have always had an interest in nutrition so once that I been diagnosed with pc and got over the initial shock, my research instincts kicked in. Altho after all these years and late night hours on the internet, I really have no clear answer.
I will say this, the ONLY time that I was able to make my psa go down was while I was on a ketogenic diet. I went off the diet because it was causing me some problems and I read that it was not the answer and could cause gene changes to the cancer which could make it more aggressive. I have kept in the back of my mind that I could go back on it if things get bad for me and there were no other options. The other piece to this puzzle that I have wondered, is that maybe it was the supplements that I was on at the time that caused or helped the psa to go down. I am currently trying to replicate this.
I am currently a vegetarian, most of the time. I have fish like salmon or sardines once or twice a week and maybe cheat once a month if we are at a picnic I might have chicken. Dairy is off my diet too. We buy Amy's Pizza that has no cheese on it and have grown to really like it. I have been following Dr. Greger and his website with all the articles and videos about diet. And I have my added supplements. Recently, I went eight months and my psa barely rose. And my cholesterol numbers are now perfect.
I have had a frustrating time with doctors. My general doctor's office has been a revolving door. Once I establish and get to like a doctor, they soon are gone. My last one left and out of frustration, I went eight months without getting my psa checked. I hated the office of my urologist. I had to take time off work to get my psa checked because of the limited hours and they kept missing my veins when drawing blood. The oncologist that I went to was of little help. NONE of them would utter a peep about diet or supplements.
This has all changed for the better. I found one of my doctors that left that office. She is on her own and now practices functional medicine. She is a great help! And I found an integrative oncologist! Wow, they do exist! I spent an entire afternoon at the integrative oncologist's center that he runs meeting with people on diet, exercise, supplements, self esteem and then the doctor spent almost an hour with me.
Well it turns out that my supplements pretty much are what he recommends and my diet is what he recommends (a few minor adjustments). I am exercising more now. Used to be half hour walk. Now a half hour very brisk walk with a heart rate monitor, some interval training and some strength training. Yes, research shows exercise helps. He is going to run my psa every two months and just monitor me for now.
In the extensive testing that they did, I found out that I was deficient in vitamin B6. My inflammation markers all looked good except for homocysteine, which can be fixed with B6. They also found that I have adrenal fatigue. Which makes sense and I have been telling my doctors for 12 years that I am so tired all day long and have some trouble sleeping. All the other doctors would run my labs and tell me they are normal and offer very little after that.
This is my first post, and yes I rambled but hope there is something helpful in it.
Dave, your story mirrors mine in several places. Your reference to Dr. Gregor who is a vegan, I believe and often cites hundreds of references to support his conclusions regarding diet and disease. My homocysteine is also high. I stopped taking B6 and Folate because of their involvement in the methylation process. High homocysteine has been connected with, among other illnesses, CVD and Alzheimer's Disease. Many years ago I, too, was a vegan. I once had an amino acid test performed. It turned out that not only was I deficient in the essential amino acids but I was also deficient in the non-essential ones as well! I relied heavily on soy for a major source of my protein before soy was identified as the poison it is. One result was that it screwed up my thyroid. Generally, I try to limit myself to one non-vegetable protein a day (sardines, salmon, wild Icelandic Cod, chicken or egg whites. My remaining meals are grain or lentil based. I also eat some non-fat yogurt. Here, again, the studies on calcium and Pca are indecisive. Also, my D 1,25 OH is fairly high. I believe that many of the calcium tests never measured Vitamin D which could very well influence how calcium is metabolized in or bodies.
Problem with diet, as with medication, is what works for one person often does not work for another. I applaud your finding an "integrative oncologist." Just finding an integrative internist is difficult enough. When I have found them, without exception, no one wanted to take medicare even though I have an Anthem/Blue Cross provider. The reimbursement is not enough for them. Have you ever closely examined the bill from your oncologist's office? The amount asked for is insane as is the amount medicare eventually pays. I'm not complaining: I most surely wouldn't be around without him, but...In any case, should you chose to, I would like to know what supplements you have begun taking again as part of your daily regime. I, too, exercise: I walk for 45 minutes a day; lift light weights three times a week and do Medical Gongfu exercises (have been doing this for twelve years) every morning and sometimes a different routine in the late afternoon.
Thanks for sharing. At first I was buying everything that I read about and taking the shotgun approach. Now I research, tho my knowledge is a novice level, my ONC supports what I am taking.
My list is very similar to yours, however I stopped taking mushrooms a couple of years ago (I spent a great deal of money on the most popular ones. In my humble opinion, Coriolus for immune support is the way to go. Check PubMed (coreolus psk chemotherapy). Mushroom Science mushroomscience.com/ uses the traditional Chinese method to process mushrooms, not a mechanical method which breaks up the mushroom but not the cell walls that remain to lock in the nutrients (ex., Coriolus PSK, PSP) and cause them to be inaccessible, while Mushroom Science uses an infusion method of hot water extraction. To your list I have added:
Yes, I get my mushrooms from mushroom science. I rotate reishi with coriolus and lion's mane. I had an old dog that I loved, she was diagnosed with a liver tumor and not expected to live a month or two. I gave her one coriolus every morning. She lived for almost a year. I have taken several of supplements on your list. I read about a supplement, decide to add it and let another drop off the list.
My ONC mentioned giving me metformin in the future. Also mentioned that he gives cimetidine to some patients.
"Colon cancer patients should ask that their tumor specimen be sent to a laboratory to determine the Lewis antigen expression of the cancer cells.
Lewis X and Lewis A antigens are cell surface ligands on cancer cells that adhere to a molecule found in blood vessels called E-selectin. The adhering of cancer cells to E-selectin on a blood vessel wall initiates the metastatic process.
In one study, approximately 70% of colon cancers examined expressed high levels of these Lewis antigens.* Other cancers such as breast and pancreatic have been demonstrated to express these Lewis antigens also.
Since cimetidine inhibits the expression of E-selectin in blood vessels, cancer cells in the bloodstream that express Lewis X or Lewis A antigens can't bind to the blood vessels and establish a metastatic tumor. These cells are instead eventually eliminated." LE Mag July, 2002.
The key here are the Lewis Antigens. If your cancer doesn't have them, then Tagamet (Cimetidine) doesn't work. I tried it for 10 days a number of years ago, but it did nothing for me. You can take the Tagamet without testing for the antigens. Ask your onco to measure blood markers before and after.
I will have some more to say about mushrooms and Pca later.
"I have never trusted the high fat diet: I just felt that it was not only counter-intuitive, but it just didn't make sense in light of what we have hearing these past forty years about the evils of cholesterol and its associated with heart disease."
Exactly! We have been bombarded with advice based on a false hypothesis, to the point where modern research results looks counter-intuitive.
If you read "The Big Fat Surprise: Why Butter, Meat and Cheese Belong in a Healthy Diet" by Nina Teicholz, you will learn some interesting things about the past 60 years (not 40), & how Ancel Keys & his disciples hijacked the subject. Teicholz spent 10 years on the book. She seems to have read all the papers. Importantly, she interviewed surviving key players, including some who were deprived of funding because they didn't follow the party line. Very smart author; wonderful book.
President Eisenhower had a heat attack in 1955, while playing golf. Cardiovascular disease became a big issue. Washington DC was suddenly willing to allocate money to study the problem. Keys was very charasmatic & Keys appeared to have the answers. So the money went to those who fell in line with Keys.
Was sugar somehow implicated in CVD? Absolutely not - only saturated fat. Keysians even worked for Big Sugar. Coca Cola was described as a healthy snack. Keys response to Yudkin, the British scientist who identified sugar as a CVD risk: "a mountain of nonsense." There was never a debate with Keys. He took no prisoners.
Did smoking contribute to CVD? Are you crazy? Even cardiologists smoked - & they preferred Camels:
OK, the AMA eventually banned cigarette ads in their journal, but why did they ever accept them? Perhaps it was counter-intuitive that smoking could affect heart health?
Ultimately, & Keys would perhaps be surprised by this, people would begin avoiding fat entirely. In spite of LO-FAT & NO-FAT rubbish in the supermarkets, Americans are fatter than ever. We have epidemic proportions of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, & symptoms of the Metabolic Syndrome. The food pyramid has carbs at the base & fats at the top.
The U.S. fattens cattle for market on feedlots. They eat corn or soy to create fat. Why is it such a complicated idea for some, that carbs make fat? And it makes the worse kind - triglycerides stored as visceral fat.
Even Dr Myers pushes the 40% fat Mediterranean diet. He says that his low-fat patients do not do well.
Many years ago I visited a Gongfu Master (no matter how unreasonable TCM seems to us, they are, after all the people who discovered the benefits of Chinese Thunder God Vine!) for a consultation on what herbs and foods I could add to my diet and a set of Medical Qigong exercises I could do to unblock and re-channel my Qi). I got the diet and routine. This Grandmaster had the photographs of numerous famous actors and actresses hanging on the walls in his waiting room, so I was impressed. These people have the money and contacts to find the "best." One major take-away I have from that consultation (thirteen years ago?) was this: When I asked him if I should go onto a vegetarian based diet, he looked up at me (he was seated at a desk), sadly shook his head and told me that the sickest people who wind up in his office and die the earliest are vegetarians! Unfortunately, I didn't follow all of is advice (I still do the exercise routine), went on a vegan (not vegetarian diet) screwed up what was left of my health (in addition to being diagnosed with Pca.) If one eats red meat, grass fed, no grain, there is still the role of iron in Pca development,
"...primary tumors always develop at body sites of excessive iron deposits. Such deposits can be inherited or acquired. Prostate cancer is a disease of iron-overloaded cells. At the cellular level, prostate cancer occurs when cellular iron overload chaotically affects cellular molecules and organelles (DNA, chromosomes, mitochondria, etc)."
"According to Warburg, cancer should be interpreted as a type of mitochondrial disease. Cancerous cells can be very diverse genetically. Chaos theory is a scientific principle describing the unpredictability of systems. Cellular iron overload can affect DNA, chromosomes, telomeres, etc" (Medical News Today, April 5, 2015)
This is a pet topic of mine. I am surrounded by Food Neurotics of varying stripes (I live in Asheville, NC, after all). Speaking with many of them has left me with the impression that they are mostly control-freaks who are afraid to die.
After my PCa diagnosis and successful RARP surgery, I had a titanic shift in my attitude. I have decided that I will make sensible choices as far as diet (and everything else) goes, but since I am a die-hard foodie, baker and gourmet chef that I absolutely would not lead a life of misery and deprivation. Life is made to be lived, and I have decided to live.
Besides, there is very little that we have actual control over.
Good food, -the best fresh and natural ingredients, prepared with love and attention to detail, and shared with others brings me great joy. The healing and life-affirming power of joy and happiness are worth at least as much as a truckload of organic carrots and chia seeds.
On the other hand, spending countless hours obsessing over food and this, that or the other supplement, magic potion du jour, etc, is a source of stress that kills joy. I can think of countless ways to put that kind of energy and brain-space to much better use.
I have become an athlete- walking, running and doing Crossfit because I can, and it feels good and makes my clothes fit better.
Although right now I am moving towards improved health, I know that I, just like every other mortal on this flowering rock hurtling through space, am but temporarily able-bodied, and that one day, I am going to die. I am at peace with that idea.
I therefore wish to live out my remaining days as best I can. This is how I have chosen to steer my journey. I wish the rest of you nothing but peace, good health and a long happy life no matter what path you choose for yourself.
You are absolutely correct in what you have written. Although I am not a "foodie": for me, food is what it is: fuel. Unlike the rest of the animal kingdom, humans have come to obsess (to use your term) a bit too much over it. But if it makes them happy, fine. I do think your comment about "death" is very apt. Just reading HealthUnlocked, at times, increases my blood pressure. I guess what it gets down to for many folks is that it's not so much as the thought of dying, as it is the pain and suffering that goes with it. I have subscribed to Buddhist thinking for over twenty-five years. Buddhist believe in the transitory nature of life and how the manner in which we face it is often the cause of our suffering (notice: suffering, a mental state, as opposed to pain which usually has physical origins). However, although I have managed to be mindful in many aspects of my life and try to think before acting, the thought of my demise (especially after a scan or the latest edition of a blood test) continues to haunt me. I also know that we have very little control of what happens to us in our lives. We think we can control situations and events but that is an illusion. But, on the other hand, letting things happen without making some kind of effort to affect outcomes seems unwise, like walking into your oncologist's office with no suggestions, questions, etc. Doctors tell us that we should take some responsibility in our own health decisions (this is often BS--many of them hate Internet Doctors, as they often refer to such individuals).
Diet is no small factor influencing our health.There are many people who kill themselves with an unwise selection of food. If there is a chance that certain kinds of food or nutrients can affect our well-being, why shouldn't we take advantage of them? I think, one's mental state and attitude are also important factors. Many of us would like some reassurance from science that we are on the right path regarding our diets. What drives us crazy is that science is not, and probably cannot, provide us with any concrete reassurance. Ergo, we drink alligator blood, our own urine and shop in the rainforest for foods to keep us well. Science has not done well by us. Most of us are too ignorant to really comprehend their papers (which they write for one another, not us), papers that often have an ulterior motive (publish or perish) behind them. Thanks for taking the time to reply and help add more to the context of the discussion.
In addition to being a foodie, baker and gourmet, I have also been formally trained in the Sciences. If "Science hasn't done well by us," it may have to do with a fundamental misunderstanding of what Science actually is, how it works, and what it's for. It's not due to any fundamental flaw of Science, properly carried out, but rather the unrealistic expectations that we place upon it.
As an engineer, I get this from the lay public all the time. "Is this ____ 100% safe?" they ask? "Will it kill me? Is it harmful?" The list goes on and on. My stock reply is that you're asking the wrong question. Getting out of bed and walking to the bathroom is not 100% safe. It may harm you, and yes, it can even kill you.
Everything in life, whether designed by an engineer or not, must be viewed in terms of the relationship between it's potential risks versus its expected benefits. To that end, a cursory understanding of Probability and Statistics is invaluable.
I enjoy a challenging hike through the forest for its many benefits, but it's not 100% safe. There are bears, copperheads and lightning, to say nothing of an errant rifle bullet during hunting season. There are slippery rocks and other trip hazards. It pays to have awareness of the risks, but more importantly a realistic perspective of the probability of them harming you. To me, the choice is clear. Your mileage may vary.
Getting back to Science and diet- Any scientist who is working ethically will tell you that it's a complicated topic. It's damned difficult to tease out a causal relationship between a food substance and a particular health outcome, especially when factoring in an impossibly large and complicated set of mitigating variables. Humans aren't laboratory rats, and most well-adjusted folks don't want to live like one, either.
The mistake that the lay public inevitably makes is to look at a news story about a single study published by some scientist in Estonia and concluding that it's actionable in any kind of real way. While our Estonian friend may well have made an important discovery, much work must be done before we can use the revealed information to alter our personal diet or lifestyle, or whatever, let alone responsibly recommend it as a one-size-fits-all solution to the general populace.
All this can be terribly complicated, and may leave us with more questions than answers, but that is exactly as it should be. Although the phrase, "Scientifically Proven" is bandied about regularly, there is no such thing. The only people who use that term are hucksters who are trying to give their con the thinnest patina of legitimacy, or those who simply don't know any better.
Standard disclaimer: Scientists are also human beings, and barring overt unethical behavior, things still don't always work as they should:
I will caution you, however, that if your are seeking certainty or even re-assurance, this won't help much, for such things are not the province of Science. There are, however, many others who make a comfortable living selling, for a tidy sum, the Illusion of Certainty according to current fashion- simplified, sanitized and wrapped up in a pretty red bow. Caveat Emptor.
A good read (although I find it amusing that the Introduction was written by someone with whom the author would likely have little patience):
First, let me say that I agree with 90% of what you have written, again. I grew up reading Alan Watts and listening to his talks on the local Pacifica station. Secondly, I didn't say anything being 100% safe--no such thing. Most people won't make this assumption unless our current Leader or some like-minded individual presents an "alternative fact" as such. Unfortunately, in a very unsure and insecure world it is a human weakness to seek some semblance approaching something we can believe in, but there are no guarantees, even when they are provided (i.e., my last swimming pool cleaner). I guess for the religiously inclined there is always faith. God will heal my prostate. Yeah, I know that it's the journey that should be the point of focus, not the goal which often is illusory and unsatisfactory when reached or achieved. My wife and I like to hike. In fact we will shortly visit our favorite hiking area around Eureka, Ca. Yes, I have been accused of not "smelling the roses," as they say. I usually eat a small amount of chicken or fish each day at noon with a salad, but my breakfasts and dinner our usually vegetarian-based. This July 4th, everyone, except me, was gorging themselves on barbecued hamburgers or steak. Although I probably would have enjoyed a hamburger on a nice onion roll, I didn't partake. The desire didn't last more than a mini-second and then it was gone: no regrets. I think that's the key. I try to live without regrets and I really don't need anyone to remind me of how much of life I am missing: I have my wife to do that, thank you.
Thanks for responding. I need to be more careful with my pronouns, since I tend to use the word "you" in a general sense. I did not direct them specifically at you, but to whoever is reading.
I'm outspoken and sometimes strident, which is usually my baggage talking.
Finally, I come to share. It's not important for me to be right, or to have others agree with what I say. I hope that even if there was 0% agreement that we could still have a conversation.
Wishing you peace and healing by whatever means work best for you!
You're talking to another big ego here! Many years ago my wife and I took something called the Landmark Forum. One of the take-a-ways from that intensive three-day session (I went on for the Intermediate Program: my wife finished the Advanced Program) is that all arguments inevitably boil down to "I'm right, you're wrong." One of the benefits of mindfulness is to get past this obstacle. I still have a long way to go!
Diet is such a complex subject. I was fat, I lost 100 lbs; I have to lose another 25 lbs. The last 25 is the hardess. I used to eat 128 oz. of red meat per week. Now I eat 4 oz, a week. I have made other concessions, but eating and drinking are one of the pleasures we have left. I drink one bottle of non alcoholic beer a day.
That sounds reasonable. I'm sure 4 oz of red meat a week and some non-alcoholic beer don't even appear on the radar what constitutes appropriate or inappropriate eating behavior.
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High fat diet and PCa 
