The easiest thing to remember about low-fat diets is that you can follow one just by adhering to the famous food pyramid that appears on many grocery store labels. The food pyramid is the number of servings from each foods group that the United States Department of Agriculture recommends for a healthy diet. The tip of the pyramid is fat, which you are instructed to use sparingly. If you do that, you’re following one of many low fat diets.

Low-fat diets are what most physicians have encouraged their patients to follow for decades. However, proponents of high-protein diets like Atkns, the Zone and South Beach, say that low-fat diets, often high in carbohydrates, actually make you fatter and less healthy.

Both may be right, because most nutrition experts will say that not every carbohydrate is good for you and neither is every fat. Some health care professionals will now tell you to follow low fat diets but watch your sugar intake when eating the up to 11 servings of carbs that the food pyramid recommends each day.

Some of the most popular low-fat diets include Pritikin, Jenny Craig, Nutrisystem and Fit for Life. All of the diets allow you to eat pasta, breads, grains, fresh vegetables and fruits. The focus is cutting out fatty foods like butter, fatty beef and cheese out of your diet, and eating more complex carbohydrates. Sugar is also out when you follow low-fat diets.

The anti-low fat diets crowd says that the evidence that it doesn’t work is the plethora of fat-free products on the market and the increase in fat people. Americans are fatter than ever, but studies have found they eat much larger portions than they need of just about every food. It may not be the fault of following low fat diets alone.

If you have never followed any of the high-fat diets, you’ll find it to be simple. Just eat 8-11 servings of carbohydrates a day, 3-6 servings of vegetables, 2-4 servings of fruits, 2-3 servings of dairy products and 2-3 servings of meat. Avoid fats, oils and sugar when trying low-fat diets.

Low carbohydrate diets have become quite popular in recent years. Many low carb diets have been put on the market and many people have used them. But what are the true results?

Despite the growing popularity of low carb diets, the dismal statistics remains: 95% of all people who go on diets fail. And why is that so? Why do low carb diets fail in high numbers?

Low carb diets became popular because they promised a fast fat loss. And they did deliver on that promise, but what the marketers of low carb diets didn’t tell the public was that this weight loss will be short termed only.

The reason why any weight loss from low carb diets will be short termed is that low carb diets is just a fancy name for Starvation Diets. Of course you lose weight if you eat a small amount of carbs. That’s because you’re naturally cutting down on the amount of calories you eat and so you lose weight. Initially.

What happens to your metabolism ensures that you will not be able to lose weight in the long run.

You see, your metabolism adjusts to the amount of calories you eat and slows itself down to that level. When you go on a low carb diet, your metabolism is initially high. You reduce your calorie intake so you lose weight. But then your metabolism slows down and you stop losing weight even though you’re still eating that reduced amount of calories.

Another thing which is bad about low carb diets is that it’s hard to keep at them for a long time. Why? Try to imagine eating no carbs or very little of them. Sure, you can pull it off for a while. But not for long. When you stop being on that diet what happens? Your metabolism is still slow but now you’re eating carbs again. What happens is that now you gain back all the weight that you lost and more.

That’s why if you’re using a low carb diet, you’re doomed to fail.

What you should do is follow a diet which lets you eat a reasonable amount of calories of all food groups and use the Shifting Calories method to keep your metabolism running high. Then you’ll succeed in losing weight and maintaining your weight loss for a long time.

Low carb diets, such as Atkins, are very popular and get a lot of discussion and publicity. This is despite the fact that statistics studies state that 95% of diets fail dismally. 95% of the people end up gaining back all the weight that they’ve lost and even more, so they end up fatter than they were to begin with. Why does that happen? Why do these diets which seem so promising end up failing? Why do they work for a while and then seem to stop?

The most important question, though, is why is it so hard to stick to these low carb diets for a long time?

I mean, if you could stick to these diets for a long time, you wouldn’t end up gaining weight back. But it’s virtaully impossible to do that due to the depriving nature of these diets. If you truly believe that you can eat as little carb calories as these diets dictate (The Atkins diet allows you 20 grams of carbs a day during its 1st phase), then go for it. Most people want to lose diet without starving themselves, and eating so little carbs is starvation. And most people don’t want to spend months without eating carbs. It is also extremely difficult.

The thing which is most detrimental in low carb diets to your long term weight loss is the effect such diets have on your metabolism. Since these diets are basically deprivation diets, your metabolism believes that you’re starving and slows itself down to burn less and less fat and calories. That’s why the weight loss rate in such diets slows down as time goes by. Once you stop eating low carb meals, your metabolism is so low that your fat deposits and weight shoot up.

A good diet allows you to eat a reasonable amount of food and does not deprive you of any food group like carbs. That’s why the Shifting Calories method was created: to find a way to lose weight without depriving your body and starving you. Low carb diets may provide a short term solution, but in the long run may lead you to failure.

The Calorie Shifting diet, better known as the Fat Loss 4 Idiots diet, has become very popular all around the world. Why did this diet become so popular? What makes it so successful? And the most important question: Why is this diet better than other diets?

Most of the diets on the market today are basically deprivation diets marketed under different names. The various low carb, low fat, or low calorie diets, which were so popular in the 90’s and early in this decade, held great promise but for many turned out to be a grave disappointment. The statistics state that over 95% of diets fail. This happens because deprivation diets cause your metabolism to slow down and they are also extremely hard to stick to for a long time.

The reason why your metabolism slows down when you go on a deprivation diet is that, on a biological level, your body believes it is starving. Your metabolism slows done in order to burn less and less calories. That’s why so many deprivation diets provide short termed initial weight loss but not a long termed one. After a while you simply stop losing weight.

The reason why it’s so hard to stick to these diets for a long time is that they just starve you. How long can you avoid eating carbs or eat very little of them? It’s unnatural, and most people break sooner than later. The road to gain back all the weight you lost is very short from that point.

The Calorie Shifting Diet (Fat Loss 4 Idiots) is different because the weight loss isn’t based on deprivation. You eat a balanced menu of 4 meals a day. You lose weight by constantly shifting the types of calories you eat. This keeps your metabolism running high at all times and burning more and more fat. Because you eat 4 meals a day, you never starve and it’s easy to stick to for a long time. Because your metabolism remains high, your weight loss rate remains steady over time. You get a fast and continuous fat loss.

EAGLE MOUNTAIN — John Hendrickson, grandfather, ex-Central Intelligence Agency officer and former Draper city manager, will be Eagle Mountain’s new city administrator, Mayor Don Richardson announced Tuesday night.

After months of turmoil and vacancy associated with the city’s managerial position, the Eagle Mountain City Council unani- mously ratified Hendrickson’s contract Tuesday night with no hesitation.

To Hendrickson, who agreed to step down from his position in Draper amid conflict and a “split vote” by that city’s council, the unanimous motion in Eagle Mountain came as a relief.

“It’s nice to know, at least going in, that you have that support,” Hendrickson said. “In many ways (the situation in Draper) was a situation of a very divided council. I want to be very careful with what I say, but people make choices and we made a choice. And that’s about where I want to go with that.”

Hendrickson was chosen to be city administrator over Don Bluth, city administrator in Bluffdale, who has also dealt with some controversy with his position. Eagle Mountain council members publicly interviewed both Bluth and Hendrickson about three weeks ago before formalizing their choice this week.

“There were a number of great men and women who applied for this position,” Richardson said. “We’re very fortunate to have John.”

Hendrickson, who has a master’s degree in public administration from Brigham Young University, has more than 30 years of experience in public management. He inherited the government gene from his father, who worked for the federal government for 20 years and was responsible for establishing the Environmental Protection Agency.

Hendrickson grew up in Wyoming, but he moved frequently because of his father’s employment.

Hendrickson received his undergraduate degree from BYU, before he became employed by the CIA. He also worked as a military intelligence officer during the Vietnam War.

“It’s been an interesting life.” Hendrickson said. “It’s never been dull for me. I always thought I would go into medicine or dentistry and then I got sidetracked into government. I had a professor who said, ‘I think you would be a good city manager.’ I said. ‘What’s that?’ and then here I am 30 years later.”

Hendrickson, 63, currently lives in Sandy with his wife, though he says he may move to Eagle Mountain “when the time is right.” The grandfather of 30 says he is used to “60-plus” hour work weeks.

Before coming to Eagle Mountain Hendrickson worked in city government positions in Wyoming, Idaho and California — but he’s had his eye on Eagle Mountain for awhile. After five years of working in city government in California, Hendrickson says he was drawn to come to Eagle Mountain because of its potential.

“It’s the fact that it’s a growing city,” Hendrickson said. “I’ve managed a number of fast growing cities in my career. … I always had some interest in what was going on out here and how that might develop. … There’s just lots of issues. I didn’t want to go into a position where I felt like I was vegetating. I don’t think that’s going to be the case at all here.”

The International Conference “Promotion and Development of Botanicals With International Coordination: Exploring Quality, Safety, Efficacy, and Regulations” was organized by the School of Natural Product Studies, Jadavpur University, Kolkata, India. This article presents the background, objectives, and highlights of the presentations of different plenary, oral, and poster sessions. The conference was supported by the Drug Information Association of the United States. Different organizations of the government of India such as the National Medicinal Plants Board (NMPB); Department of Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy (AYUSH); Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR); Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR); and Defence Research Development Organization (DRDO) also supported this international event. The key topics were as follows: Developing Botanicals Through International Coordination; Exploring Traditional Medicine for Development of Herbal Drugs; Regulatory Perspective for Development of Herbals; Health Care Resources-Impact of Natural (Traditional) Medicines; Ethnobotany and Ethnopharmacology in Natural Product Development: Global Perspectives; Pharmacovigilance of Natural Health Products-Evaluating Safety and Toxicity; and Industrial Perspectives and Development of Phytomedicines. Conference attendees included a variety of stakeholders: manufacturers of raw materials, phytomedicines, pharmaceuticals, and dietary and food supplements; representatives of conventional and traditional health care systems; sellers and distributors; regulatory authorities; standard-setting organizations; contract laboratories and research organizations, nongovernmental organizations, academicians, scientists, and health care practitioners. The conference also provided educational opportunities for pharmacists, pharmacognosists, physicians, phytochemists, botanists, ethnobotanists, ethnopharmacologists, pharmacologists, toxicologists, and others involved in the research, evaluation, development, and marketing of botanicals and natural products for use in health care. More than 350 delegates from different countries, including scientists/researchers from the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Brazil, The Netherlands, France, South Africa, Iran, Thailand, Fiji, and India, participated in the conference from different fields of herbal research. As Director of the School of Natural Products Studies, I was the organizing secretary of this international event.

BACKGROUND FOR ORGANIZING THE CONFERENCE

This conference was suggested through the Natural Health Products Special Interest Area Community (NHP-SIAC) of Drug Information Association (DIA). As a long-standing member of the DIA and frequent speaker and participant at DIA’s annual US convention, I volunteered to chair a meeting sponsored by DIA on natural health products (NHPs) in India. Jadavpur University is one of the best universities in India, and the School of Natural Product Studies (SNPS) is one of the pioneering organizations in the field of NHP development and took special interest to organize this international event in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Chemical Biology (IICB), the premier research institute in eastern India under the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Government of India.

Botanicals or phytomedicines have always been a major component of the traditional systems of healing in India. Besides widespread use of botanicals as medicinal products in developing countries, such products are becoming part of the integrative health care systems of industrialized nations; they are now known as complementary and alternative medicines (CAMs). Botanicals are unique products with special concerns regarding sourcing, lot-to-lot consistency, safety, and efficacy. The testing conducted on single chemical entities may also not be appropriate for botanicals because of their heterogeneous nature. However, botanicals may offer novel therapeutic potential not achievable with mainstream therapeutic interventions alone. Currently, there is an urgent need for international collaboration in the development and promotion of operational methodologies that should include variety of standard operating procedures addressing the nomenclature, quality, safety, and efficacy of these products when used as phytomedicines. In addition, there is a need for coordination and harmonization of regulations related to research and development of natural products as both pharmaceuticals and food supplements.

Safety and efficacy of the Natural Health Products (NHP) is always a cause of concern to promote and rationalize their use. Quality control of botanicals, validated processes of manufacturing, customer awareness and post marketing surveillance are the key points which could ensure the safety and efficacy of NHP. Currently there is an urgent need for international collaboration in the development and promotion of operational methodologies that should include variety of standard operating procedures addressing the quality, safety, and efficacy of these products, when used as phytomedicines.

India has an ancient heritage of traditional medicine. The materia medica of India provides a great deal of information on the folklore practices and traditional aspects of therapeutically important natural products. Indian traditional medicine is based on various systems including Ayurveda, Siddha, and Unani. The evaluation of these drugs is primarily based on phytochemical, pharmacological, and allied approaches including various instrumental techniques such as chromatography, microscopy, and others. These traditional systems of Indian medicine are each unique but there is a common thread in their fundamental principles and practices. With the emerging worldwide interest in adopting and studying traditional systems and exploiting their potential based on different health care systems, the evaluation of the rich heritage of traditional medicine is essential. The government and the private sector are exploring all of the possibilities for the perfect evaluation of these systems in order to effectively adopt the therapeutic approaches available in original systems of medicine as well as to help in generating data to put these products on the national health program.

There is tremendous growth of traditional systems of health care globally, and Indian traditional systems of medicine based on different aspects of folklore medicines have also developed a lot. There are several constraints in the proper development of Indian traditional systems of medicine:

* Lack of awareness that Ayurveda, Siddha, and Unani are basically systems of health care aimed at maintaining the normal health of human beings,

* Inadequate knowledge and lack of updating knowledge about products,

* The rules and regulations imposed for traditional medicine are almost the same as those for chemical based drugs; they are difficult to follow,

* Availability of raw materials: Already 29 plants and their value added products have been banned by the government of India as endangered plants. In addition to conservation of the environment, conservation of traditional systems of medicine is equally important by following different other techniques, which need to be exercised.

Considering these problems and prospects, India has had a great heritage of traditional systems of medicine since time immemorial. India is one of the leading biodiversity centers with 45000 different plant species. The country has 15000 to 18000 flowering plants, 23000 fungi, 2500 algae, 1600 lichens, 1800 bryophytes, and 13 million microorganisms in its biodiversity region (10). Out of these strong resources 1250 are included in traditional medicinal practices. Thus, India has a rich heritage of its own as far as the natural products and particularly medicinal plants are concerned because of its wide diversity in soil and climatic condition and rich flora and fauna. Evaluation of Indian traditional medicine is possible through the proper exploitation and exploration of the wide biodiversity and great ancient treatises of traditional medicine in the light of modern tools and techniques.

Acknowlegments-The author is thankful to the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), Government of India, New Delhi for providing financial support under the Career Development for Young Teachers Award (F No. 1-52/CD/CA (08)/98-99). Thanks are due to the Drug Information Association for providing the financial assistance to present the article at the DIA 36th Annual Meeting, June 11-15, 2000 in San Diego, California.

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1. Narayana DBA, Katayar CK, Brindavanam NB. Original system: search, research or re-search. IDMA Bulletin. 1998;29(17):413-416.

2. Sastry VVS, ed. Tridosha Theory. Kottakkal, India: Arya Vaidya Sala; 1996:3-6.

3. Pillai NK, ed. History of Siddha Medicine. Chennai, India: Department of Indian Medicine and Homeopathy; 1998:33-35.

4. Siddiqui MK, ed. State of Unani Medicine in India. New Delhi: CCRUM; 1996:3-5.

5. Mills S, Kerry B, ed. Principles and Practice of Phytotherapy. Livingstone, NY: Churchill: 2000:22-25.

6. Rao VE. Modern approaches to herbal medicine. Eastern Pharmacist. 2000;45(1):35-38.

7. Dev S. Ancient-modern concordance in Ayurvedic plants: some examples. Environmental Health Perspectives. 1999;107(10):783-787.

8. Narayana DBA, Baba B, Katayar CK. Herbal remedies through GMP/HACCP techniques. Eastern Pharmacist. 1997;41(7):21-25.

9. Anonymous. Quality Control Methods for Medicinal Plant Materials. World Health Organization. Pharma. 1992:492-559.

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The Indian government has drawn up regulations for good manufacturing practice for traditional Indian systems of medicine such as ayurveda, sidha, and unani, so that the industry can compete in international markets.

The lack of regulation was “a serious shortcoming which has now been overcome,” said Shailaja Chandra, secretary of the Indian government’s department of Indian systems of medicine. Her department had identified drug standardisation and quality control as the most important changes affecting the future of the Indian systems of medicines.

The new manufacturing regulations are calculated to improve the quality and standards of medicines being manufactured in some 9000 licensed pharmacies. The manufacturing rules prescribe essential infrastructure, staffing, and quality control requirements such as standard manufacturing processes and the use of authentic raw materials free from contamination.

A transition period of two years has been given to existing registered units to comply with the new rules by improving infrastructure and quality. Registered practitioners of the Indian systems of medicine, called vaidyas, hakims, and sidhas, and teaching institutions have been exempted from the regulations.

The Indian government is also planning to install and strengthen laboratories for testing traditional medicines, says Ms Chandra. She believes that this step will promote traditional medicines in national and international markets.

Nationally, state dispensaries will be able to stock certified medicines, and the demand will grow. “Anybody abroad who buys our medicines, whether as food supplements or as medicines, would like to be assured that we as a country have certified the safety of these products,” says Ms Chandra.

If the medicines have been tested in government approved laboratories, anybody who buys medicines could look for the good manufacturing practice certificate and be satisfied that some element of checking at a government level has taken place, she says.

Simpson Industries, Inc. said that it entered into a definitive agreement with an affiliate of Heartland Industrial Partners, LP, which will result in a merger between Simpson Industries and the Heartland affiliate. Under the terms of the agreement, each shareholder of Simpson is expected to receive $13.00 in cash per share at the closing.

The value of the transaction, including the assumption of debt, is estimated to be approximately $350 million. The Simpson Board of Directors has unani-mously approved the agreement.

“This merger clearly maximizes value for our shareholders and creates substantial growth opportunities for our business and employees,” said Roy E. Parrott, Chairman and CEO of Simpson Industries. “Heartland is an ideal partner for Simpson Industries given their resources, vision for the business and understanding of the industry,” added Mr. Parrott.

“Acquiring Simpson is the logical next step for Heartland in pursuing our strategy of assembling a full service provider of engineered metal products for automotive and industrial customers,” explained David A. Stockman, Senior Managing Director of Heartland.

“Simpson is one of the most respected suppliers in the automotive industry,” said Timothy D. Leuliette, another Senior Managing Director of Heartland. “Simpson’s strengths in design, development, machining and assembly of metal parts will be a critical enhancement to the capabilities we plan to bring together in our metal forming platform.”

Heartland had separately announced on August 2, 2000 that it had reached an agreement to lead an equity investor group that will acquire control of MascoTech, Inc. MascoTech is a diversified manufacturing company with world-leading metal forming process capabilities and proprietary product positions serving transportation, industrial and consumer markets.

Heartland Industrial Partners, LP is a private equity firm established to “buy, build and grow” industrial companies in sectors ripe for consolidation and long-term growth. The firm has equity commitments in excess of $1.1 billion and intends to increase its commitments to $2 billion. Heartland was founded by David A. Stockman, a former partner of The Blackstone Group and a Reagan administration cabinet officer; Timothy D. Leuliette, the former President and Chief Operating Officer of Penske Corporation; and Daniel P. Tredwell, a former Managing Director of Chase Securities.

Simpson Industries supplies powertrain and chassis products to original equipment manufacturers in the worldwide automotive and medium and heavy duty diesel engine markets. Simpson’s products are focused in three groups: noise, vibration and harshness, wheel-end and suspension, and modular engine assemblies.

Unani-tibbi denotes Arabic or Islamic medicine, also known as prophetic medicine. It traditionally makes use of a variety of techniques including diet, herbal treatments, manipulative therapies, and surgery. Unani-tibbi is a complete system, encompassing all aspects and all fields of medical care, from nutrition and hygiene to psychiatric treatment.

This is because the early Arab physicians took their basic knowledge from the Greeks. At the time, Greek medical knowledge was the best to be had, particularly from Galen, the renowned second century Greek physician to the gladiators and Emperor Marcus Aurelius.

However, from that point onwards, Islamic medical scholars were responsible for many developments and advancements that, at the time, placed Arabic medicine firmly in the vanguard of medical science. There followed a steady stream of Muslim medical scholars, who not only upheld the high standards that came to be known of unani-tibbi, but carried on adding to and improving the basic pool of knowledge.

* Al Tabbari (838-870)
* Al Razi (Rhazes) (841-926)
* Al Zahrawi (930-1013)
* Avicenna (980-1037)
* Ibn Al Haitham (960-1040)
* Ibn Sina (Avicenna), (980-1037)
* Ibn Al Nafees (1213-1288)
* Ibn Khaldun (1332-1395)

Medical innovations introduced by unani-tibbi physicians included:

* Avicenna was the first to describe meningitis, so accurately and in such detail, that it has scarcely been added to after 1,000 years.
* Avicenna was the first to describe intubation (surgical procedure to facilitate breathing)–Western physicians began to use this method at the end of the eighteenth century.
* The use of plaster of Paris for fractures by the Arabs was standard practice–it was “rediscovered” in the West in 1852.
* Surgery was used by the Arabs to correct cataracts.
* Ibn Al Nafees discovered pulmonary blood circulation.
* A strict system of licensing for medical practitioners was introduced in Baghdad in 931, which included taking the Hippocratic oath, and specific periods of training for doctors.
* There was a system of inspection of drugs and pharmaceuticals–the equivalent of the Federal Drug Administration (FDA)–in Baghdad 1,000 years ago.
* The European system of medicine was based on the Arabic system, and even as recently as the early nineteenth century, students at the Sorbonne had to read the Cannon of Avicenna as a condition to graduating.
* Unani-tibbi hospitals were, from the beginning, free to all without discrimination on the basis of religion, sex, ethnicity, or social status.
* Their hospitals allocated different wards for each classification of disease.
* Hospitals had unlimited water supplies and bathing facilities.
* Before the advent of the printing press, there were extensive handwritten libraries in Baghdad, (80,000 volumes), Cordova, (600,000 volumes), Cairo, (two million volumes), and Tripoli, (three million volumes).
* All Unani-tibbi hospitals kept patient records.
* A hospital was established for lepers. As many as six centuries later in Europe, they were still burning lepers to death by royal decree.
* In 830, nurses were brought from Sudan to work in the Qayrawan hospital in Tunisia.
* A system of fountain-cooled air was devised for the comfort of patients suffering from fever.
* Avicenna described the contamination of the body by “foreign bodies” prior to infection, and Ibn Khatima also described how “minute bodies” enter the body and cause disease–well in advance of Pasteur’s discovery of microbes.
* Al Razi was the first to describe smallpox and measles. He was accurate to such a degree that nothing has been added since.
* Avicenna described tuberculosis as being a communicable disease.
* Avicenna devised the concept of anesthetics. The Arabs developed a “soporific sponge,” (impregnated with aromatics and narcotics and held under the patient’s nose), which preceded modern anesthesia.
* The Arab surgeon, Al Zahrawi was the first to describe hemophilia.
* Al Zahrawi was also the first surgeon in history to use cotton, which is an Arabic word, as surgical dressings for the control of hemorrhage.
* Avicenna accurately described surgical treatment of cancer, saying that the excision must be radical and remove all diseased tissue, including amputation and the removal of veins running in the direction of the tumor. He also recommended cautery of the area if needed. This observation is relevant even today.
* Avicenna, Al Razi, and others formed a medical association for the purpose of holding conferences so that the latest developments and advancements in the field of medicine could be debated and passed on to others.