I'm Worried About Don Imus

By Alan Graham with Alfred Lehmberg
4-26-5

 

Why is Don Imus always so sick and miserable?   Frankly, I'm worried about him. He looks like hell and has a similar attitude.   And it's a real shame, too, as he has so valiantly moved away from drug addition and pulled out of alcoholism. It would be a tragedy if he were to crash so needlessly on the hard rocks of creeping Malnutrition. That's what is happening, ironically.   The irony? It comes from a personal diet he feels is informed & healthful, best practice, and rationally scientific. It is few of these things. No, for all the best intentions and attentive concerns, unfortunately, it is few of these things...   If, like me, you need a regular "Imus In The Morning" fix on MSNBC, you will notice two defining "I-dude" characteristics:   First, he has a vicious short-fused temper.   Second, as he readily admits, he is SICK all the time (His latest complaint is kidney stones...). To counter this, J.D. has a lovely, health conscious vegan wife, Deidre, and the most brilliant *Doctors* on the planet... Still, they fail to correct his general malaise, needless depression, and his ongoing poor health.   I, on the other hand, think I know exactly what's wrong with "I-dude" ...and how to fix it, if I may be so bold. Wading in, the three most significant negatives in his life are: (the 1st is the biggie -- the other 2 are likely of peripheral significance...but maybe not.)   1. His total cholesterol is a dangerously low 130. This is the result of an essential fatty acid (EFA) deficiency and a ludicrously low Satfat/zero cholesterol diet he practices. Even though he consumes plant derived Omega 3 (ALA) and some Satfat in food oils... 3 things could negate their positive effects: 1. In many people, plant ALA does not readily convert to the animal Omega 3 (EPA/DHA) found in fish oil & eggs. 2. He may not be assimilating Fats/EFAs efficiently, to begin with, due to a sluggish gall bladder causing poor bile secretion. 3. Poor Fat/EFA assimilation may be due to reduced lipase (fat digestive enzyme) production, very common with age. It almost has to be one or more of these to have such dangerously low cholesterol.   If, like most vegans, you don't consume fish or cod liver oil, an Omega 3 deficiency may result. Remember, these are people who can't convert ALA (physiologically, conversion is sluggish, or, artificially, conversion is impaired by the likes of poly, omega 6 food oils, et al). An EFA deficiency, remember, can cause virtually every chronic disease, aggressive behavior, depression... and the aforementioned, insanely low, cholesterol. This is also why he feels bad all the time! You feel better when your cholesterol is, healthfully, higher. To wit:   (From Yale University:)   According to researchers from Yale University School of Medicine, "The well-documented negative association between serum cholesterol and aggressive behavior has led Kaplan (Psychosom Med 1994 Nov-Dec;56:479-84) to propose a cholesterol-serotonin hypothesis of aggression.   According to this hypothesis, low dietary cholesterol intake leads to depressed central serotonergic activity, which itself has been reported in numerous studies of violent individuals."   Researchers studied 25 violent psychiatric patients For 7 days, the patients wore signaling devices that emitted an average of seven signals a day. Following each signal, patients filled out a mood questionnaire.   The authors found that "Total serum cholesterol (TSC) concentration was positively associated with measures of affect, cognitive efficiency, activation, and sociability, suggesting a link between low TSC and dysphoria." "These findings are consistent with the cholesterol-serotonin hypothesis and with the substantive literature linking both aggression and depression to depressed central serotonergic activity," they conclude.   Journal of Behavioral Medicine, December 1, 2000; 23: 519-529 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   2. Excessive unfermented soy in his diet -- this might be one of the reasons he has his kidney stones to begin with!   3. I'm guessing here, but I suspect that like most vegans, he consumes large amounts of bread, cereal, pasta, and refined sugar -- this can cause or exacerbate virtually every chronic illness, to include aggressive behavior, and his kidney stones.   4. This forth item does not apply to Imus or the Ranch but it could apply to you - that is the over use of the unhealthful and ubiquitous Poly unsat Omega 6 food oils like soy & corn. I bought Deirdre's cookbook to support their good works at the "Imus Ranch" for kids with cancer. I highly recommend her book...except... ...everywhere you see safflower oil be aware of two things:   First- They are using Hi-oleic safflower oil, from a hybrid plant, that is about 75% Mono unsat Omega 9 (much like olive oil) unlike the regular safflower oil that is an unhealthy 80% Poly unsat Omega 6.   Second- The cheaper Hi-oleic safflower oils are not truly "expeller, cold pressed" like most extra virgin olive oils. The Ranch uses the good kind, but you might not. Let's take the preceding 3 points one at a time:   In the first, his cholesterol is 130. His low cholesterol is caused by his fatty acid deficiency and a low Sat Fat, zero cholesterol diet. When the vacuously clueless *fitness expert*, Denise Austin, was on the I'man's show, she thought it was "wonderful" that he had a cholesterol of 130. This illustrates the depth of ignorance associated with cholesterol numbers. Read LivingTree Root # 001 "The Cholesterol Myth." for an in depth discussion...   http://www.alienview.net/ALLTCON.html ...   Remember folks... the Inuit eat Sat Fat (blubber) cholesterol protein exclusively, and most have cholesterol totals in excess of 250 or 300... but have the lowest incidence of heart disease on the planet. A question is begged, yea and verily! Also, they magically appear to be immune to many diseases, like MS, and yes... I suspect, maybe even kidney stones!   Even though Eskimos live in what could certainly be considered to be a harsh, depressing environment (Greenland ain't green) they are a calm, happy people. They are a people who find humor in most everything and are known for being frisky little nose rubbers. Move these same people to Chicago, feed them a typical American diet consisting of high sugar/carbs, low fat (EPA/DHA from fish oil), and they tend to become depressed alcoholics, prone to violence and suicide. This is because over the millenniums (through lack of use) the Inuit had lost the ability to synthesize the Delta 6 Desaturase (D6D) enzyme because they did not have veggies, hemp or flax seed in their diet. The D6D is the enzyme required for the critical first step of both of the cascading Prostaglandin Pathways (PW) which convert both of the simple EFA's (omega 6, LA & omega 3, ALA) into the more complex, powerful, and multi-purposeful Fatty acids (...omega 6, GLA & omega 3's EPA/DHA).   The Inuit by-passed this first step and the need for D6D because, by consuming cold water fish, they entered the PW further down at the EPA & DHA position.... However, on a typical American diet (High in sugar/carbs & Low in fish omega 3) they rapidly become deficient, even if they consume plant omega 3. Consequently, because they are not consuming or making EPA/DHA - they feel anxious and depressed, craving something... but they don't know what... ...so they self-medicate with booze, drugs... and Twinkies.   So, what does this have to do with an Anglo-Saxon vegan like the I-man? Well, you see the vegan leadership, incorrectly mind you, tells their people that fish Omega 3 is not necessary because plant Omega 3 (ALA) is converted by the cascading prostaglandin path-way (PW) to the animal Omega 3 (EPA/DHA) -- this is bad advise because only a very small percentage is converted to the complex Omega 3... under the best of conditions! This is because, like all babies and people with diabetes, some adults (and probably Don Imus, too) have a very sluggish and inefficient Desaturase enzyme system - this is why all baby formula contains extra virgin coconut oil! Being a Medium Chain Triglyceride (MCT), coconut oil can be digested without Desaturase enzymes (mothers milk is rich in MCTs). I digress.   Any way, these people (Iman?) don't readily convert ALA to EPA/DHA. Plus, there are numerous things we do that block or inhibit the production of D6D -- like using Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (HVO), sugar/flour, a deficiency in the vitamins and minerals needed to synthesize D6D, and most significantly the overuse of poly Omega 6 oils like soy & corn oil.   Gall bladder (GB) problems can cause poor Fat/EFA assimilation, ultimately, low cholesterol - so J.D. should have every gall bladder test that M.D.s perform to rule out disease or gall stones (both can be symptom & pain free). However, even if they give his GB a thumbs up- he may still have a problem due to thick, sluggish bile. This is a condition that M.D.s must not recognize, because the only people that talk about it are the holistic types. In similar situations it means the M.D.s don't have an answer, while the "wacky" holistic folks seem to have a really good answer. Have you ever noticed that if *doctors* can't use surgery or patented pharmaceuticals for a condition, they pretend the condition doesn't exist. An example is to pretend that low stomach acid doesn't exist... so they can sell you Prevacid -- when most people over 50 have too little stomach acid, and it is THAT which is usually the cause of heartburn. See LTR#002 "The Antacid Myth".   http://www.alienview.net/ALLTCON.html   Our modern unhealthful diet, which causes this critical EFA deficiency, could very likely be the nexus for our growing propensity for drugs and alcohol. Don Imus readily admits he was self-medicated in this fashion. I really hate to point fingers after the fact, but this is where Wyatt could have been effected. DHA is what I call the "brain food for babies." Unfortunately the final conversion step for ALA becoming DHA is the slowest and most inefficient step in the process. It is my opinion, then, that a baby with a vegan mother (especially if Mom is D6D deficient) runs the risk of being a few IQ points lower than a baby whose mother consumed 2 to 4 grams of cod liver oil daily throughout pregnancy and breast feeding. I say this with all respect to mother and child, sincerely.   Vegan's argue, in a product like Neuromins, they can get supplemental DHA from a plant source, algae. This is the kind found in all those baby formulas that proudly have DHA in large letters on the label. However, I see two problems with algae DHA: First - The manufactures of Neuromins readily admit that extracting the DHA requires RBDing (Refining, Bleaching, Deodorizing) but they don't say how much oxidation this causes, if any. The Weston A. Price foundation says that the lengthy processing causes the DHA to be 30% oxidized! Second - Most fish oil is about 1/3 higher in EPA than DHA-- Most cod liver, salmon & krill oils are the opposite, higher in DHA. This makes fish oil better for cardiovascular health, and fish liver oil better for developing the brain, eyes, etc of the fetus, and preventing dementia (Alzheimer's) in the elderly. But it really doesn't matter if one is a little higher than the other, you still get the positive, synergistic effect of both.   The problem is when one or the other is completely missing - like the Neuromins & baby formulas. We evolved always consuming EPA & DHA together, so the resulting Fatty Acid imbalance, by only doing the DHA, could have long lasting negative effects or, as a minimum, dramatically reduce its effectiveness.   There's every indication that Wyatt is well above average intellectually considering he has occasion to legitimately beat the I-man at chess -- but so what? Even if he's a genius, I'm sure he wouldn't mind tacking on another 6 or 8 IQ points (...I'm just guessing at those numbers, of course).   A dangerously low cholesterol resulting from an EFA deficiency can not only cause or exacerbate virtually every chronic disease... it makes you feel bad, folks! If you don't smoke, have elevated Homocysteine, or elevated C-reactive protein, then as we get older our cholesterol should naturally increase a little to protect us in our old age from heart disease, dementia, etc. Several mechanisms accomplish this, not the least of which is the powerful antioxidant characteristics of the unjustly maligned cholesterol.   We -are- fat and cholesterol, reader. But I mean that in a good way... it is an absolutely essential component in the make-up and construction of every cell in our body. It is the cell actually! For the optimum performance of each and every cell, the right kinds of the different kinds of fat are REQUIRED (in ratio or a relationship to one another), as food. Presently, as I just alluded, this country endures a pandemic of deficiency with regard to the "right kinds" of essential fatty acids in the everyday diet. Allowed to continue, this pandemic contributes the lion's share of responsibility to the descending spiral of impaired bodily cells... or, obesity, miserable illness, impaired cognition, and early death... presently enjoyed by rank and file Americans and a tormented "I-man"! Knowledge regarding essential fatty acids in (or not in!) our foods is key to realizing optimal health, maximized intelligence, increased energy, and an expanded quality of life!   High cholesterol (let's say as high as 260) in a 75 year old woman... is not a disease -- it can be a response to a disease (arterial inflammation caused by sugar, flour, HVO and Omega 6 poly oil), OR it can be a very natural, healthful response to old age.   With regard to the SECOND point above... we should talk about Soy's dark side. Up front let me say that this does not apply to fermented soy products like soy sauce, miso, etc...   a. Unfermented soy contains Oxalates that bind with calcium in the kidney to form stones. b. Soy contains phytates that bind with numerous minerals resulting in a possible deficiency or mineral imbalance. c. Soy contains phytoestrogens that can effect hormonal balance causing subtle yet long term undesirable physical changes in little boys that are flooded with phytoestrogen from the moment of conception.   The Imus Ranch appears to make an effort to use less harmful forms of soy (fermented forms). But tofu is not fermented--and though less harmful than other forms, it still begs the question "how much is too much"? The rhetoric is so strident on both sides that it is difficult to know exactly where the truth lies. So I may be wrong about tofu - and I hope I am. However, the following gives me pause: 1st. Dr. Mercola at www.mercola.com says it's not safe (I've never found him to lie). 2nd. The Weston A. Price Foundation also warns us (I don't think they are in the tank for any special interest). 3rd. Homo Erectus did not evolve eating soy, or other high phytate/estrogen foods.   THIRDLY -- Grain's very dark side... Modern man's excessive consumption of bread, cereal, and pasta... is how we got in this mess in the first place. Grains, much like soy, also contain phytates which can cause a mineral imbalance that can contribute to kidney stones and aggressive behavior. Also, the insulin as a result of "pancreatic freak-out" caused by excessive refined carbs, is a major cause of heart disease. I'm sure the Ranch uses really good organic "true whole grain" products that are not processed "to death"....But for the rest of us poor folks - don't be fooled by the caramel colored, highly processed "whole wheat goodness" found in many so-called "whole grain" products.   The reason these problems exist is because we did not evolve eating grains, especially refined grains. A diet high in grain carbs, low in fat & cholesterol, is the cause of heart disease, not the other way around... remember the Eskimos?   I used to be a vegetarian, and I really enjoyed it because being a creative cook I rapidly became a "Tofu Grandmaster," plus, I didn't have to rationalize the whole "killing animals" thing. The problem; however, was that my lipid profile was way out of whack! How could I do all the things the doctors recommend -- regular exercise, no eggs, cholesterol, or satfat, yet have abominable cholesterol numbers, still... especially my HDL which was a dangerously low 30! After several years of intense research, I finally saw the light. I cut out all sugar, grains, soy, HVO, and poly food oils. I started eating 5 to 8 raw or poached eggs daily, along with whey, flax, and hemp protein... with just a little bit of lean meat. Folks, we are what we ate... millions of years ago!   I also consumed massive quantities of salad and veggies. Additionally, I use only olive, coconut, hemp, and flax food oils, plus fish, cod liver, and borage medicinal oils.   Well, in just two or three months my total cholesterol dropped from about 270 to 190 and my HDL rose significantly from 30 to 50. The reason this happened to me and millions of others is because we evolved eating those thing just mentioned: a. Grass fed meat high in Omega 3 (not cornfed meat, high in Omega 6). b. Sea creatures high in Omega 3 (not cornmeal fed, farm raised fish high in Omega 6). c. Eggs, high in Omega 3 (not corn fed, high in Omega 6). d. Veggies, seeds, nuts and legumes (high in Omega 6, but the more complex desirable form...GLA). e. Nutritionally dense insects containing super lecithin, etc... f. A little bit of fruit (probably not all that sweet either).   HOWEVER, we did NOT evolve eating soy, grains, sugar, fruit juice, HVO, or massive amounts of rancid/toxic poly unsat Omega 6 oils like Soy, corn, grape seed, cottonseed, or saff/sunflower (...the regular, not the HI-OLEIC...) Additionally, both peanut and canola have a fairly substantial amount of healthful mono unsat Omega 9 at 48 and 54 percent, respectively. Unfortunately, the benefits of the Omega 9 are over shadowed by the oxidized, RBDed, Omega 6... at 33 and 37 percent, respectively.   Before I tell you how JD can get healthy and happy, let me say, if a person is any one of the numerous forms of vegetarian for moral reasons -- I have the utmost respect and admiration for them; however, if they are a vegan because they think it is more healthful, I'm afraid they are wrong, unless they do a few thing to correct the shortfalls... things that most vegans just won't do.   For example, most will not take a B-12 supplement because it comes from animals. Their leadership tells them the plant B-12 in spirulina, and chlorella, will protect them from pernicious anemia (PA). Unfortunately the plant derived B-12 won't work because it is a B-12 analog. In all fairness I've heard that some influential vegans have seen the folly in this attitude and are recommending supplemental (animal) B-12.   For those vegans who don't suffer from PA, as proof that the plant B-12 works, are actually getting the required teeny-tiny little dose (2 mcg) of animal B-12 in the nutritionally dense insects that are ground in their flour! Animals, after all. Supposedly this is why the vegan cultures, like India, where a lot more insects are part of the un-poisoned eco-system -- Indian vegans rarely have PA, but if you move them to a place with high insecticide use, PA goes up.   I feel in my heart that vegans are more than likely the most decently honest people on the planet (if you have sympathy to animals you are likely to be sympathetic towards people... Hitler was a noted exception). In my humble opinion their leadership is so ideologically driven, that they keep the truth from their followers. Here is what Don and to a lesser degree, Wyatt, should do:   1. Daily consume 6 or 8 grams of high potency fish oil, or mix it up with cod liver oil. This, most importantly, but in concert with the rest of my recommendations, will cause his cholesterol to slowly increase and probably level off somewhere closer to a healthful 190 or 200 -- then he might want to drop back down to 3 or 4 grams daily... or not.   2. For gall bladder health: (a). Daily take 2or3 grams of Taurine and Beet concentrate to thin the bile. (b). After 2or3 weeks, continue with the T&B, but add a periodic liver & gall bladder detox flush. (c). After the first detox flush, take a broad spectrum Bile Salts capsule with each fatty meal. If digestion improves or stays the same, continue with salts. If digestion gets worse, ie diarrhea, then stop- because it means you're producing plenty of bile.   3. Keep soy and grains to a minimum (except fermented soy). Get veggie protein from hemp seed and flax seed. I notice in the cookbook they have eggs, so maybe Deidre lets Don and Wyatt consume them and that they're not just for the visiting kids. If that is true, and I hope it is, I would hope that they would consider adding another benign animal protein in the form of the highly digestible whey protein. Whey is a milk by-product and if you use the more expensive WPI (Whey Protein Isolate) with cross flow filtration, it is even slightly superior to a raw egg as far as protein digestibility. If the Imus boys do eat eggs... as much as possible they should be consumed raw or cooked as little as possible on low heat.   4. Stay away from soy and cow's milk. It's easy to make your own hemp milk. The following website has this and numerous other hemp recipes.   http://www.nutiva.com/nutrition/recipes/milk.php   Hemp Milk   Ingredients: 1/4 cup shelled hempseeds 1 cup water flavorings (vanilla, maple syrup or honey)   Directions: Place seeds into a blender and add small amount of water 1 inch above the seeds. Turn blender on at multiple speeds and agitate seeds so they become a thick hemp cream.   Then add either vanilla, maple syrup or honey or only a ripe banana and serve as a thick drink or add water at a ratio of 4.75 water to 1 part seed for a lighter hemp milk.   A great alternative to soy milk without the throw away aseptic containers.   Two more suggestions: First, I just recently heard about fermented soy milk that I'm assuming is probably OK. Second, some magical stuff called Coconut Cream Concentrate -- blend with water, stevia, or vanilla, etc. to make a great milk substitute.   5. Never eat cereal ever again -- most of it ranks right up there with refined sugar as a source of pancreatic insulin freak-out... ultimately, heart disease. The Imus boys should eat a five or six egg, veggie, and cheese omelet every morning. Or a giant smoothie made from whey protein powder, hemp protein powder, and/or hemp seed, ground flax seed, melted coconut oil, a banana or blueberries, stevia to sweeten, and quality ice water. Other options -- raw eggs, green foods like spirulina, barley grass, alfalfa, etc.   6. The whole Imus family should take a large daily dose of 1000 to 5000 mcg of methylcobaline B-12 in a sublingual form in order to by-pass the gut in the event any are missing the intrinsic factor necessary for absorption. In fact, B-12 is so difficult to absorb, that just to be safe, Don should have his doctor give him methyl. B-12 shots in massive doses for several months. B-12 is safe no matter how large the dose and it is so necessary and so beneficial. This will help sooth Don's frazzled nerves.   7. Never use poly unsat Omega 6 food oils. See "Fat Facts" http://www.alienview.net/xzfat.html   8. Never use margarine -- use olive, coconut oils, or real butter.   9. Take a health food store quality multi vitamin/mineral and a liquid trace mineral formula -- the kind with 60 or 70+ trace element, not the kind the MDs might occasionally, grudgingly recommend, with only a handful of the most significant ones.   10. Also take a Calcium/Magnesium supplement at the 2 to 1 ratio complex, in divided doses (500 mg Cal. Per dose) for a daily total of 2000 Cal / 1000 Mag. Amino Acid Chelated is the best in my opinion. I bet Don's MDs told him to avoid calcium supplements because of his Kidney stones -- again, MDs don't have a clue... Strange as it may seem, you're more apt to develop kidney stones when you're calcium deficient. To insure maximum Cal absorption take 800 units of vit. D3 in divided doses (never take the potentially toxic D2 found in milk). Or, try to insure that you get 15 minutes of direct sun around high noon, 5 or 6 days a week. If you're black or live up north just take the D3 supplement or cod liver oil... and always take it with calcium... never without.   11. Insure your gut, the most important organ in your body, is working at peak efficiency:   a. If you don't have ulcers, take betaine HCL with pepsin (stomach acid in a capsule). If your tummy feels warm after the recommended dose then stop taking it. Always take with food. b. Take a broad spectrum of digestive enzymes, in particular Lipase for Fat&EFA assimilation. Some enzyme formulas come already with the bile salt, Ox Bile, and some also have the stomach acid, Betaine HCL w. Pepsin. c. Take a broad spectrum of pro-biotics like acidophilus. d. No antacids or carbonated drinks... ever. See LTR #002 "The Antacid Myth" http://www.alienview.net/ALLTCON.html   12. No refined sugar... use stevia.   That's it folks -- unfortunately after JD does all of these things, his show will suffer because he is likely to turn into Mr. Rogers... when Rogers was alive of course. But hey, the "I-man" can always FAKE the efficacious bellicose... he doesn't have to be biologically driven to it...   Until next time... Well BE!   Alan D. Graham 800 Robin Parker Rd. Ozark, AL 36360   Phone (334) 774-0395 E-mail -- burt@graceba.net   alienview@adelphia.net -:|:- www.AlienView.net

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