Dr. Mercola has posted a response to an annual obesity report by Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.  The 2011 report that shows US obesity rates are rising–no surprise–and that twelve states have obesity rates above 30 percent while only four years ago there was only one state with an obesity rate over 30 percent.  The report gives many more details about the growing obesity epidemic.

So what’s wrong?  Why is the rate of obesity increasing so quickly?  Dr. Mercola has proposed “Two Keys to Curb Out-of-Control Obesity.”  His two keys are:

1. Severely restricting carbohydrates (sugars, fructose, and grains) in your diet, and
2. Increasing healthy fat consumption

To support key number one, he says that “Fructose is the NUMBER ONE source of calories in the US” and that “fructose, primarily in the form of cheap high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), is in just about everything—even food items you’d never expect would need it, including diet foods and ‘enhanced’ water products.”  The amounts consumed are far from moderate.  He says that even “most infant formulas contain the sugar equivalent of one can of Coca-Cola.”  Also in support of key number one, he points out that “Refined carbohydrates (breakfast cereals, bagels, waffles etc) quickly breaks down to sugar, increase your insulin levels, and cause insulin resistance, which is the number one underlying factor of nearly every chronic disease known to man, including heart disease.”

About key number two–increasing fat consumption–he says that the health agencies and food industry have been “equally wrong about fat.”  Fats have for too long been considered to be “dietary villains, especially saturated fat.”  He continues by saying that “Saturated fats are indeed good for you.. . .They provide the building blocks for your cell membranes and a variety of hormones and hormone like substances that are essential to your health, and saturated fats from animal and vegetable sources (such as meat, dairy, certain oils, and tropical plants like coconut) provide a concentrated source of energy in your diet—a source of energy that is far more ideal than carbohydrates, and that’s why I chose these two specific “keys” in combination, because when you cut down on carbs, you generally need to increase your fat consumption.”

Dr. Mercola explains how fructose is metabolized and why it is especially harmful. He discusses the importance of adding healthy fats to the diet when carbohydrates are reduced. His sources of healthy fats include olive oil, coconut oil, butter from grassfed cows, nuts, egg yolks avocados, grass fed meats, and palm oil. He recommends olive oil for such uses as salad dressing and coconut oil for cooking.

It seems clear from the rapid increase in the obesity rate that government recommendations over the past 50 years have not worked.  His “Two Keys” are worth considering and might prove more effective than “official” recommendations.

If you want to compare Dr. Mercola’s recommendations to what the USDA says you should eat, check out the USDA’s Personal Daily Food Plan.  Note the that the USDA plan specificly excludes raw, unprocessed milk.  Which diet plan would you think leads to better health and a reasonable weight?  Which one would you prefer?

For more information, and resources, about healthy fats, see my previous post, Everyone knows low-fat diets promote weight loss! Really?