# Healthy preppers prepping diet and glycemic load



## rugster (Mar 2, 2014)

This is a spinoff of another thread. I actually got in trouble on another forum relating to this topic. 

I believe the most important prep you can have is your health. Yet, the top killers in American are diet and life style driven. We eat, drink and smoke ourselves to death 4X that of other all the other top causes of death combined!

It's now understood that high glycemic diet results in an increased risk of many diseases including heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, many types of cancers and emotional issues such as depression and is a driver in 4 of the top 10 causes of death in this country. There's plenty on the net about this here's one link...

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=faq&dbid=32

How many calories do YOU need every day? Do you know? Do you think you know or are you assuming? Use the link below it could save your life!
http://www.mayoclinic.org/calorie-calculator/ITT-20084939

I like http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/cereal-grains-and-pasta/5712/2 to look up foods and see how healthy they are and their glycemic load

White rice, a staple of most preppers .
A person needing 2,500 a day caloric intake would need to consume 12 cups of rice a day to meet their caloric needs and a glycemic load 150% or (250) over the recommended daily glycemic load of 100. Obviously, most won't be eating just rice cut that in half 6 cups still 50% (150) over the recommended glycemic load.

-Other foods for example lentils have a much lower glycemic index for a 2,500 a day diet it would be and just under 144 at 6 cups you would be at a glycemic load of 78
http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/legumes-and-legume-products/4439/2

I'm not saying is get rid of rice. I am saying rice should not be the largest source of caloric intake of your daily diet now or SHTF but in combination with other healthy grains and protein sources. I am saying you should calculate these things into preps and not assume. And finally , this is more important with those prepping long term preps Vs. short term preps it is important in day to day life.

1 Heart disease: 597,689 (Diet, weight, lack exercise) 
2 Cancer: 574,743 (diet,weight, exercise, smoking, drinking)
3 Chronic lower respiratory diseases: 138,080 (smoking a large % are smokers)
4 Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 129,476 (highest risk groups... smokers, high blood pressure & cholesterol, obesity, alcohol, diet )
5 Accidents (unintentional injuries): 120,859
6 Alzheimer's disease: 83,494
7 Diabetes: 69,071 (genetics..can't do much for that! obesity & diet are the #1 preventable risk factor) 
8 Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis: 50,476
9 Influenza and Pneumonia: 50,097
10 Intentional self-harm (suicide): 38,364


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## camo2460 (Feb 10, 2013)

Very good post rugster, I have found that the "Atkins Diet" is very helpful in controlling Glycemic Load, losing weight, maintaining weight, or gaining weight, and all the while controlling Glycemic Load. The fact is that most people don't equate some foods to glucose, which is Sugar, and your body doesn't care. Extra Glucose is stored as fat, and to much can cause Adrenal fatigue or failure ( Diabetes ), and excess weight. For example, eating a large baked Potato is the same as eating nearly one cup of Sugar, as far as Glycemic Load is concerned. This is not suggesting that high Glycemic foods should not be eaten, however knowing the Glycemic content of foods and cutting back on the portion size will go a long way in losing weight and maintaining good health.


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## Caribou (Aug 18, 2012)

Eating a protein with your carbs is going to help your body process the carbs in a more gradual manner. This will help reduce the blood sugar spikes.


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## tsrwivey (Dec 31, 2010)

Lack of adequate exercise isn't likely to be a problem post SHTF. Working full days of physical labor will burn those carbs up fast enough that they won't be a problem for most. Most of our ancestors at some point lived off of legumes, potatoes, & grains without much else. 

We don't normally eat much grain or sugar, we primarily eat meat, fruit, & veggies. However, we store grains & sugar because we will need the extra calories post SHTF & carbs are comfort food.


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## readytogo (Apr 6, 2013)

*Preppers and healht.*

Wow what a great post,as prepares we should know how to survived and diet or food is a number one priority , have to learn how to preserved food; canned , dry , etc., which means that we control what we eat and by doing so we stay away from what I called "The cardboard death mentality" prepackage and process food items .I`m type 2 diabetic my child is type 1,I have lost 100 pounds so I can really tell a story on food, and to be honest I eat what ever I like ,but is *ALL* homemade, from biscuits to sausages to ham to desserts, to pasta ,to sauces ,I only buy the raw materials the processing is done at home that way I eliminate the chemicals ,the killers in our food chain, we also count carbs and carbs factors and keep track of the glycemic index of the items that we buy ,is not difficult it comes natural as you learn, in our home we love bread, so I baked with the cleanest natural flour I can buy our salt is sea salt ,our oil is olive oil and our butter is homemade from cream and sea salt.
This may help those on the glycemic count. Let me know.
http://www.glycemicindex.com/
Composition of foods.
http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/search/list
ps.the only thing I never do without is my SOS and biscuits:beercheer:


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## rugster (Mar 2, 2014)

Caribou said:


> Eating a protein with your carbs is going to help your body process the carbs in a more gradual manner. This will help reduce the blood sugar spikes.


That is true but it's also the type of carbohydrate specifically simple carbs spike blood sugar Vs. slower processed complex carbs



tsrwivey said:


> Lack of adequate exercise isn't likely to be a problem post SHTF. Working full days of physical labor will burn those carbs up fast enough that they won't be a problem for most. Most of our ancestors at some point lived off of legumes, potatoes, & grains without much else.
> 
> We don't normally eat much grain or sugar, we primarily eat meat, fruit, & veggies. However, we store grains & sugar because we will need the extra calories post SHTF & carbs are comfort food.


The issue here isn't exercise really it's the metabolism of high glysemic food and your body. For example, A high glysemic load from simple carbs causes a spikes in blood sugar which causes the release of Insulin and enzymes this results in the inflammation of arteries which is a driver in hardening of arteries and plaque build up(clogging of arteries)

The most common causes for inflammation disorders is food and environmental factors some are less obvious than others. Gluten intolerance or Coeliac disease is an inflammation disease cause by flour.


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## MCNSemperFi (Mar 25, 2014)

I was somewhat with you until the last sentence...

Celiac is an autoimmune disease. It is not caused by flour. In fact, the cause of celiac is still unknown. Those with celiac can not consume gluten because it damages the villi in the intestine which in turn causes them not to be able to absorb vital nutrients. Even a little speck of gluten (cross contamination) can cause damage to someone with Celiac. Celiac can actually lead to other autoimmune diseases. 

Gluten sensitivity is not a disease, but it is a real issue as it can cause all kinds of health problems. You can still eat gluten without damaging the intestine, but you will pay the price for doing so. Depending on how sensitive you are to gluten, you may or may not have to worry about cross contamination. A gluten allergy is just like any other food allergy. I could go on, but you get the picture.

Yes, current food practices such as gmo and nasty chemicals have definitely changed foods so they would no longer be recognized by our ancestors. While environmental factors may play some role in diseases, I would argue that it's less about the environment and more about our personal habits including eating practices, lack of exercise/physical labor, and too little sleep.

A whole foods, balanced diet is the best bet for pretty much anyone. You add and subtract foods according to your dietary needs/restrictions. It's also critical that we take care of our bodies by not sitting on our butts all the time which probably won't be an issue if we go back to a hunter/gatherer society.


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

First of all I want to say you make a good point with this thread, there is a huge chance that we are more likely to suffer from a health condition than to meet some untimely fate in a shtf situation. And even if we are in a real shtf scenario our health will be a huge factor on how well we do.

Secondly I agree that some foods need to be watched and or limited for some people. I personally consume only minimal amounts of sugar and processed foods of any kind.

For me personally I don't see myself eating significantly different in any shtf scenario long term. I store what I eat and eat what I store but am also in a situation where almost all of the food that we consume is produced and prepared by our family. I realize not everybody can or would want to live that lifestyle but for me it works quite well and so I carefully consider what I eat today (or at least try to most of the time).

The only other thing I want to mention is that we don't have food as figured out as many would have us believe. There is an amazingly complex interplay of nutrients, anti-nutrients, minerals, etc that all have an effect on our diet and yet most of the methodology used in food studies are simply not taking that into account (not that they aren't trying). Take for instance the nutrition data site, I have used it a lot over the years and still do but much of the "information" put forward there is somewhat misleading.



> *Source: Nutrient data for this listing was provided by USDA SR-21*. Each "~" indicates a missing or incomplete value.
> Not a huge deal but the USDA's numbers have been notoriously inaccurate, particularly for anything not industrially raised. White rice would probably be one of the least affected though
> 
> Nutrition Data's Opinion, Completeness Score™, Fullness Factor™, Rating,* Estimated Glycemic Load (eGL)*, and Better Choices Substitutions™ *are editorial opinions of NutritionData.com*, given without warranty, and are not intended to replace the advice of a nutritionist or health-care professional. Nutrition Data's opinions and ratings are based on weighted averages of the nutrient densities of those nutrients for which the FDA has established Daily Values, and do not consider other nutrients that may be important to your health or take into account your individual needs. Consequently, Nutrition Data's higher-rated foods may not necessarily be healthier for you than lower-rated ones. All foods, regardless of their rating, have the potential to play an important role in your diet.
> ...


Anyways, this has little to do with the O.P I suppose but something that I find important nonetheless. To the site's credit I suppose, they no longer show the horrendously unscientific "inflammatory factor" they used to.


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## rugster (Mar 2, 2014)

MCNSemperFi said:


> I was somewhat with you until the last sentence...
> 
> Celiac is an autoimmune disease. It is not caused by flour. In fact, the cause of celiac is still unknown. Those with celiac can not consume gluten because it damages the villi in the intestine which in turn causes them not to be able to absorb vital nutrients. Even a little speck of gluten (cross contamination) can cause damage to someone with Celiac. Celiac can actually lead to other autoimmune diseases.
> 
> ...


That's not what the mayo clinic says; Celiac disease is an immune reaction to eating gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley and rye. If you have celiac disease, eating gluten triggers an immune response in your small intestine.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/celiac-disease/basics/definition/con-20030410

When you eat gluten containing products your body has an Immune response to Gluten in wheat and releases antigens, these antigens cause inflammation.

Atherosclerosis,... hardening of arteries and build up of arterial plaque is actually an ongoing immune inflammatory response to certain foods and spikes in blood sugar and insulin. This arterial inflammation causes Leukocytes (white blood cells) to attack and bind to areas of inflammation in arteries and with lipids (cholesterol)

The important point is it's your body's response to gluten and other inflammatory foods that is the mechanism for the top killers in the USA.

Here's a really good book called inflammation nation

http://www.amazon.com/Inflammation-Nation-Clinically-Nations-Epidemic/dp/B001GVJCDI


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

Not to speak for MCNSemperFi but I think what he is saying is that Celiac disease is not_ caused_ by gluten. A symptom of the disease is the reaction to gluten but what makes a person subject to the illness is less well known. For instance many people eat gluten and don't get Celiac while others may not eat it and still develop the disorder although they may not show symptoms.

I personally don't want to get into the whole "inflammatory foods" debate, it is certainly worth considering but unfortunately the methodology used to determine which foods are inflammatory and to what degree is very lacking imo. There are so many factors to consider, not the least of which is the individuals response to different foods.


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## rugster (Mar 2, 2014)

I believe it to be a worthy discussion.
My simple attempt here is not to give definitive conclusions but to generate thoughts on what is healthy.
After all, what is prepping without your health?

There is plenty of research and data exists out there on the topic

Also, the If inflammation factor is fairly straightforward for foods based on a foods content of..

-amount and type of fat
-essential fatty acids
-vitamins, minerals and antioxidants
-glycemic index
-anti-inflammatory compounds

http://inflammationfactor.com/the-if-rating-formula/


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## dixiemama (Nov 28, 2012)

With high numbers of family members in both my family and my husband's, this has always been a concern for us. To help, I have purchased many cookbooks from WWII and before and cook 90% from them. We have a working farm so we get plenty of exercise and grow what we eat. I can take you to the farm that our livestock came from and see their grandparents. The veggies are grown from seeds that are almost as old as me and our baking goods come from the Mennonite store. 

It helps knowing where your food comes from and how to prepare it. We don't use any oil, but bacon grease or butter for everything.


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

rugster said:


> I believe it to be a worthy discussion.
> My simple attempt here is not to give definitive conclusions but to generate thoughts on what is healthy.
> After all, what is prepping without your health?
> 
> ...


Take for instance two foods that are (or at least were) rated "inflammatory"; whole eggs and yogurt. The ratings may well have changed because they always seem to be, the authors would say that is due to constantly refining their numbers. Whole eggs were rated moderately inflammatory last I checked. The problem is, when people eat eggs in the real world OR in controlled studies (even double blind placebo) they have been shown to DECREASE inflammation:scratch
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2265719/

Yogurt was rated as very inflammatory but what happens when people eat it in double blind placebo controlled studies? Decreases inflamation
http://myhealingkitchen.com/medical-conditions/arthritis/arthritis-make-it-better/yogurt-fights-arthritis-inflammation-in-five-ways/

Now these studies are not using organic, pasture raised foods with different/"better" amino acid profiles, things like CLA etc, these are just industrial raised versions.

I could go through many more foods and studies but I will leave it there, especially since this thread was about glycemic index.


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## MCNSemperFi (Mar 25, 2014)

cowboyhermit said:


> Not to speak for MCNSemperFi but I think what he is saying is that Celiac disease is not_ caused_ by gluten. A symptom of the disease is the reaction to gluten but what makes a person subject to the illness is less well known. For instance many people eat gluten and don't get Celiac while others may not eat it and still develop the disorder although they may not show symptoms.


That is exactly what I was saying.



rugster said:


> That's not what the mayo clinic says; Celiac disease is an immune reaction to eating gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley and rye. If you have celiac disease, eating gluten triggers an immune response in your small intestine.


Trying not to roll my eyes.... My family has been gluten free for nearly 7 years, so I'm very well informed about Celiac and gluten sensitivity.

The issue is that you have oversimplified several things on this post. It's not as cut and dried as you seem to think. You can find a study to back up most anything you want. Our society has been bamboozled into thinking a lot of things are bad for you because some agency decided it.

And with that, I will stop..... :soapboxzipper:


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## rugster (Mar 2, 2014)

cowboyhermit said:


> Take for instance two foods that are (or at least were) rated "inflammatory"; whole eggs and yogurt. The ratings may well have changed because they always seem to be, the authors would say that is due to constantly refining their numbers. Whole eggs were rated moderately inflammatory last I checked. The problem is, when people eat eggs in the real world OR in controlled studies (even double blind placebo) they have been shown to DECREASE inflammation:scratch
> http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2265719/
> 
> Yogurt was rated as very inflammatory but what happens when people eat it in double blind placebo controlled studies? Decreases inflamation
> ...


Hum, I've never heard of eggs being high inflammatory? Eggs are an excellent food sources a complete protein and a very low glycemic load additionally eggs are full of saturated fat and no trans fat and actually very healthy.

http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/dairy-and-egg-products/120/2

The inflammation index for one large egg

-amount and type of fat; eggs have saturated and no trans-fat 
-essential fatty acids; omega-3s & omega-6s 
-vitamins, minerals and antioxidants; wide variety of vitamins and minerals 
-glycemic index; 5 of a daily recommended max of 100 - low inflammatory 
-anti-inflammatory compounds; vitamin E, zinc, selenium

Index for 1 cup of white rice (less healthy) 
-amount and type of fat; none
-essential fatty acids; none
-vitamins, minerals and antioxidants; only a few mostly folate 23% thiamin 17%
-glycemic index; 24 rice is nearly 5X that of an egg!
-anti-inflammatory compounds; selenium

it's not the fat or cholesterol it's the metabolizing of starch & sugar

http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/cereal-grains-and-pasta/5712/2



MCNSemperFi said:


> That is exactly what I was saying.


Isn't that a little like the fire department showing up at your house fire and saying we can't fight the fire until they find out what caused the fire?

Inflammation drives auto immune disease .. with celic gluten is the trigger.

There is a genetic predisposition to gluten intolerance and celica disease here's a 2,000 year old body found with celiac disease and they ran a genetic test and found the same DNA associate with modern day high risk of the disease.

http://www.glutenfreedomproject.com/learning/topics/4755/6119
and here...
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3468865/#__ffn_sectitle



MCNSemperFi said:


> Trying not to roll my eyes.... My family has been gluten free for nearly 7 years, so I'm very well informed about Celiac and gluten sensitivity.
> 
> The issue is that you have oversimplified several things on this post. It's not as cut and dried as you seem to think. You can find a study to back up most anything you want. Our society has been bamboozled into thinking a lot of things are bad for you because some agency decided it.
> 
> And with that, I will stop..... :soapboxzipper:


First, excellent reducing your gluten intake as well as trans fats and refined sugars is healthier for you and your family you are probably heather 
because of it than most Americans.

Yes,I agree the subject is more complex however the fundamentals remain the same;... high simple carbs, starch refined sugars, trans fat diets are not healthy

This topic reminds me of smoking through the body of evidence of how bad smoking is for people many still smoke


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## MCNSemperFi (Mar 25, 2014)

Yes, there is a genetic disposition to celiac, but having that gene doesn't mean that you will definitely have it. Contrary to what you keep trying to say, they still don't know what triggers celiac. (We're dealing with both Celiac and gluten sensitivity at our house.) Just because we don't know what triggers it, doesn't mean that we can't make the dietary changes necessary to live a better life. I know where you are trying to go with this, but because we deal with so many people who truly don't understand that gluten free isn't just a fad, we try to be very careful with how things are worded.

I agree that processed foods are not healthy which is why I advocate a real foods diet. When you have to be gluten free, you get really good at reading labels. For us, that naturally lead to a better diet due to really seeing what was put into foods.

Prepping as a gluten family is interesting. When you add in the desire to have a real foods diet, it gets even more interesting.


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

rugster said:


> Hum, I've never heard of eggs being high inflammatory?


If you look at post I said whole eggs were rated "moderately" inflammatory last I checked, seems like little has changed, I guess they might be considered "mildly inflammatory".

From the source of the "IF" factor;
http://inflammationfactor.com/look-up-if-ratings/


> Egg, white 2 ounces -2
> Egg, whole	2 ounces -85
> Egg, yolk 2 ounces -182


Apparently yogurt is anywhere from -50 to -200 now.

Point is, even the industrial versions of these have shown to not be inflammatory when actually eaten (actually the opposite has been true), and so in conjunction with the many other foods that are similarly mislabeled the entire rating system is in question. Unfortunately the science behind it, (these specific rating methods) does not appear very sound imo.


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## rugster (Mar 2, 2014)

I believe we all can agree eating healthy(er) is best? 

Singling out an egg isn't an issue in the context of a healthy diet. Eating an egg with whole grains and other healthy foods is a good diet choice.
Your body needs cholesterol and one egg provides you with about 50% of the RDA and while eggs have saturated fats
they also have protein and high is several types of vitamins like B12, phosphorus, selenium 

The health issue comes about when eating too many eggs in a high fat diet full of processed & refined foods sugar, flour, simple carbs, bad fats. 

I fear this is the where many preppers diets sit


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

Personally, for me, food is one of the most important things in my life (it is also my livelihood). The trouble is figuring out what is "healthy" for you, what you enjoy, what you can afford, what you feel good about supporting and then finding a balance there. My point was not to single out eggs or yogurt, like I mentioned I could dig up many more examples. 

My point was that if people are counting on ratings like these they need to be aware of how questionable the science they are based on may be.

It has been said the only diet that humans are not adapted for is the "modern western" one and I do agree there is some truth there. Humans in the past have been documented to be happy and healthy on diets ranging from Inuit cultures where fruits and vegetables were almost non-existent to almost vegetarian in others, when examined closely though these groups had particular cultural adaptations that made it possible (inadvertantly eating large amounts of insects or eating specific organ meat for example). 

A good starting point imo is to look at some traditional diets that served people well for centuries and find one that might work for you, then try to tweak it here and there with foods that work well for you in some way (health, personal preference, lifestyle etc) while realizing that the science of nutrition and health has not been settled by someone selling a book.


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## rugster (Mar 2, 2014)

MCNSemperFi said:


> Yes, there is a genetic disposition to celiac, but having that gene doesn't mean that you will definitely have it. Contrary to what you keep trying to say, they still don't know what triggers celiac. (We're dealing with both Celiac and gluten sensitivity at our house.) Just because we don't know what triggers it, doesn't mean that we can't make the dietary changes necessary to live a better life. I know where you are trying to go with this, but because we deal with so many people who truly don't understand that gluten free isn't just a fad, we try to be very careful with how things are worded.


This is interesting this article says some evidence points to glyphosates the active ingredient in Roundup as the cause of gluten intolerance & celiac disease

http://www.examiner.com/article/is-it-the-gluten-or-is-it-the-glyphosate


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## tsrwivey (Dec 31, 2010)

rugster said:


> I believe we all can agree eating healthy(er) is best? ...The health issue comes about when eating too many eggs in a high fat diet full of processed & refined foods sugar, flour, simple carbs, bad fats.
> 
> I fear this is the where many preppers diets sit


A preppers diet will likely consist of foods that store well long term (rice, beans, whole wheat, legumes, etc.) & whatever they can grow, which would include a lot of veggies. The fiber in the veggies slow down the absorption of the carbs thus preventing the spikes in blood sugar.

In reality, infection & parasites will likely get most long before they have to worry about any diet related illnesses.


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