Fiber Menace [Book]

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FIT_Goat
FIT_Goat Posts: 4,224 Member
edited May 2016 in Social Groups
For those who are interested, Fiber Menace by Konstantin Monastyrsky is currently $0.99 for the Kindle edition at Amazon.

I don't know how long this will last. I think it's normally $9.99 for the Kindle edition. This is a good read, especially for those who wonder why some of us carnivores are so anti-fiber.
Fiber Menace is for people who believe fiber prevents cancers, reduces the risk of heart disease, regulates blood sugar, wards off diabetes, lowers appetite, induces weight loss, cleanses the colon, and eliminates constipation.

Tragically, none of it is true, and Fiber Menace explains why it’s the complete opposite. Most of those findings have been well known and widely publicized even before Fiber Menace’s release. Here are some of the most striking examples:

— Fiber doesn’t ward off colon cancer, according to the Harvard School of Public Health: “For years, Americans have been told to consume a high-fiber diet to lower the risk of colon cancer […] Larger and better-designed studies have failed to show a link between fiber and colon cancer.” Scores of other studies, cited in Fiber Menace, have demonstrated that fiber increases the risk of colon cancer. (p. 181)

— Fiber doesn’t prevent breast cancer either, according to the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. In fact, it’s the complete opposite: “Carbohydrate intake was positively associated with breast cancer risk.” Fiber happens to be a carbohydrate too, and carbohydrates are the only food that contains fiber. (p. 183)

— Fiber doesn’t reduce the risk of heart disease, according to the American Heart Association: “A fiber supplement added to a diet otherwise high in saturated fat and cholesterol provides dubious cardiovascular advantage.” Furthermore, these supplements caused “reduced mineral absorption and a myriad of gastrointestinal disturbances” — factors that in fact, contribute to heart disease. (p. 41)

— Fiber doesn’t counteract diabetes, according to the Harvard School of Public Health: “Fiber intake has also been linked with the metabolic syndrome, a constellation of factors that increases the chances of developing heart disease and diabetes.” Truth is, fiber requires more insulin or drugs to control blood sugar, and makes diabetes even more devastating. (p. 220)

— Fiber doesn’t curb appetite, according to the Jean Mayer U.S. Department of Agriculture Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University: “…fiber supplements did not alter hunger, satiety or body weight in a pilot study of men and women consuming self-selected diets.” In fact, fiber stimulates appetite, extends digestion, expands stomach capacity, and makes you hungrier the next time around. (p. 60-76, or here.)

— Fiber doesn’t keeps “colon clean” by speeding elimination, according to the highly respected and authoritative Rome II: The Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders textbook: “There is little or no relationship between dietary fiber and whole gut transit time.” In fact, fiber delays transit time more than does any other food ingredient, and is the primary cause of chronic constipation, hemorrhoids, diverticulosis, ulcerative colitis, and Crohn's disease. (p. 21,23, 29, 103)

— Fiber doesn’t relieve chronic constipation, according to the American College of Gastroenterology Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders Task Force: all legitimate clinical trials demonstrated no “improvement in stool frequency or consistency when compared with placebo.” How could it, if it caused it in the first place? (p. 105, 115)

But that's only a small part of fiber’s menacing role in human nutrition. It also has it’s imprint in practically all digestive disorders. In that context, learning from Fiber Menace diet may end up becoming one of the most transformational experiences of your life.

Replies

  • OlSewNSew57
    OlSewNSew57 Posts: 4 Member
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    Thank you, I'll check it out.

    All the other conventional wisdom about healthy diets has been wrong, maybe it's wrong about fiber, too. :)
  • KarlaYP
    KarlaYP Posts: 4,439 Member
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    Thanks! Got it!
  • V_Keto_V
    V_Keto_V Posts: 342 Member
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    I wouldn't read to much into fiber and correlation to disease states or cancer prevention since it's nearly impossible to separate fiber from carbohydrate. Large epidemiological studies aren't going to adequately represent the benefits of the few who eat low carbohydrate with high fiber content (high fiber : carbohydrate ratios). Yes, too much fiber is counter productive for absorption (more isn't better) & yes, fiber should be avoided in many GI Dxs like Crohns, ulcerative colitis, diverticulitis, IBS, etc.

    Both fiber & fat significantly slow Gastric emptying time...I don't understand how this is a detrimental knock on fiber (other than for people with GI disorders). This delayed transit time mechanism is quite beneficial for diabetics (as well as obesity) as represented by a class of medications called Glucagon Like-1 Peptide receptor agonists. Moderation...
  • Sunny_Bunny_
    Sunny_Bunny_ Posts: 7,140 Member
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    Thank you! Great share
  • hakamruth
    hakamruth Posts: 124 Member
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    Thanks. Bought it.
  • reblazed
    reblazed Posts: 255 Member
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    Thank you. Got it
  • wheatlessgirl66
    wheatlessgirl66 Posts: 598 Member
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    Me, too. Thanks for the tip!
  • DittoDan
    DittoDan Posts: 1,850 Member
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    Sounds like yet another "camp" that says the opposite. It seems like almost all diets have these. I am sure that there are studies that show the opposite of this study (with all other factors being the same).

    Kinda like dairy. There are a lot of studies that say its bad and a lot that say its good. Who is right? WHat is the truth?

    I think that since the gut microbiome is so different in each person, couple that with all the other variables like genetics, environment, stress, immunizations, vaginal or c-section birth, breast fed or formula fed, (ad infinitum) and that's why we get so many contradictory studies.

    Dan the Man from Michigan
    Keto / The Recipe Water Fasting / E.A.S.Y. Exercise Program
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  • DietPrada
    DietPrada Posts: 1,171 Member
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    I can offer based on first hand experience that fibre gives me bloating, flatulence, constipation, prevents me losing weight and offers no benefit whatsoever. I eat predominantly meat and fat, with a very small amount of green vegetables (like maybe once a week) and I have no digestive issues whatsoever. That's good enough for me.
  • FIT_Goat
    FIT_Goat Posts: 4,224 Member
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    I am reading the book, myself, for the first time. I've only seen excerpts before. He certainly has some strange ideas about diet and weight loss. Apparently, you can't lose fat unless you eat zero carbs and extremely low amounts of protein/fat (amounting to less than a thousand calories a day). LOL

    I guess when I lost all that weight doing keto (~50 pounds) it was all water and poop. It couldn't have been fat. There wasn't a single day when I wasn't eating nearly double his max numbers or more.

    Still, the information on fiber is pretty interesting. I wouldn't take his advice for losing weight, unless there is a better plan later on in his book.
  • Dragonwolf
    Dragonwolf Posts: 5,600 Member
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    FIT_Goat wrote: »
    I am reading the book, myself, for the first time. I've only seen excerpts before. He certainly has some strange ideas about diet and weight loss. Apparently, you can't lose fat unless you eat zero carbs and extremely low amounts of protein/fat (amounting to less than a thousand calories a day). LOL

    I guess when I lost all that weight doing keto (~50 pounds) it was all water and poop. It couldn't have been fat. There wasn't a single day when I wasn't eating nearly double his max numbers or more.

    Still, the information on fiber is pretty interesting. I wouldn't take his advice for losing weight, unless there is a better plan later on in his book.

    Yeah, some of his assertions are a bit wing-nut level stuff. It's a shame, because it means you have to weed out a lot of crap to get the good stuff. Perhaps his body was so badly messed up that he couldn't lose weight except to do that, and he extrapolated from there? I know I've experienced similar, where it's very difficult for me to lose weight on anything short of carnivory, though I don't need to so severely restrict calories. Just spitballing.

    He is where I found out about Dr. Kellogg, though, and his campaign for fiber being based off an unhealthy obsession with fecal matter and *kitten*.