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December 07, 2005
Should We Follow the French?
For decades many within the scientific and medical communities have called the French a "paradox" because both their eating habits and lifestyle foster an enviable life expectancy, significantly lower rates of heart attacks, cancer, diabetes, degenerative disease, and a lower incidence of obesity in their population when compared with other industrialized nations even though their diet is high in fat (38-45% of total calories, as much as 40% of fat from saturated fats).
To give you a quick idea of the difference in health - the French:
• Rank #16 in the world at 79.28 years (the US ranks #48 with 77.14 years) for life expectacy
• Have an obesity rate of 9.4% (the US has an obesity rate hovering around 33%)
• Average 47 litres of wine per person annually (the US averages 7 litres per person)
• Average 52 litres of soft drinks per person annually (the US averages 216 litres per person)
• See a rate of 39.8 deaths per 100,000 from heart attack (the US sees 106.5 deaths)
• Consume just 7-pounds of added sugar per person annually (the US consumes 152-pounds per person annually)
I think one of the most striking differences is deaths from heart attacks - the very health problem we are told again and again a low-fat diet will help prevent. Put another way, if you eat and live like the French, your odds of dying from a heart attack is rare despite a high-fat diet.
Posted by Lisa at December 7, 2005 09:57 AM
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