There's a huge debate that goes on, seemingly behind the scenes, regarding who can counsel when it comes to nutrition - for a good read on the issue, see here and here. Sure, everyone has an opinion on how to eat (because we all eat!), but that opinion can become dangerous when individuals have medical conditions that require specific diets - this is the whole reason there are Registered Dietitians. I have a lot of thoughts on the issue in general, as well as Academy sponsorship by big food, but for now, let's stick to counseling.
In the alternative health field, one of the biggest topics to discuss is the controversy over saturated fat and dietary cholesterol. The current dietary recommendations set down by the Institute of Medicine have placed limits on the amount of cholesterol (<300mg) and saturated fat (<7% calories) that should be consumed in the diet. In response to this, the alternative health/low-carb/Paleo/high-fat movements have responded with some evidence showing that saturated fat intake does not strongly correlate with heart disease and, henceforth, conclude that foods, like eggs, rich in cholesterol and saturated fats, are a healthy, essential part of the diet. Never mind that they generally don't give a dosage (one egg a day, 3 a day, 4 a week, 12 a week??), or discuss how overconsumption of foods rich in saturated fat/cholesterol can displace other nutrient dense foods.
In general, I am pretty pro-egg (particularly omega 3 eggs) from a nutrition perspective (you can argue against from animal ethics and environment perspectives), when it comes to the average, active, healthy individual. For a good read on the research surrounding eggs, both epidemiological and controlled trials, check out Colby Vorland's analysis over at http://nutsci.org/category/eggs/.
I don't have your medical records/blood work, nor am I a registered dietitian, so I am not going to make any overarching statements about how many eggs should be consumed in your diet. This is where things start to change over from giving basic nutrition advice to counseling. Telling your healthy, fit/active, 20-something year old cousin to have an egg a day is one thing. Telling your diabetic 50-something father-in-law to consume eggs ad libitum because cholesterol/saturated fat recommendations are a sham is quite dangerous. When it comes to the internet, and talking about nutrition, you don't know who is reading your site, what their family history is, what their blood work looks like, what their fiber/omega 3 intake is, what their BMI is, how much they exercise, etc etc. Although I find it a bit extreme, this is why some states have gone after internet nutrition practitioners.
Why do I say don't recommend eggs for your diabetic 50-something father-in law? Let's look at some data. A recent review, in the British Journal of Medicine (1), concluded that higher egg consumption (>1/day) was not associated with increased risk of coronary heart disease or stroke. A second, published in Atherosclerosis (2), found the opposite result, building on previous research stating the same (3), stating that egg consumption increases the risk for CVD in a dose-dependent manner. Despite the two having different results, BOTH conclude that individuals with type 2 diabetes have increased risks of heart disease with increased egg consumption - individuals with diabetes have considerably altered lipoprotein metabolism (5), and need specialized nutrition. This isn't the first study to report a detrimental effect of egg consumption in diabetics (4). Individuals with diabetes can work with dietitians to reduce their consumption of saturated fat and cholesterol containing foods, and replace those displaced nutrients in other ways.
The moment nutrition goes from general statements "Eggs can be a healthy part of a diet" to "You should be consuming eggs", this becomes counseling and an ethical issue. Eggs are just one example of areas where extensive training and understanding of the scientific literature and medical nutrition therapy is essential when counseling individuals on nutrition. Counseling laws are there to protect consumers from individuals who are unqualified - those who have never been trained in reading research, statistics, biochemistry, and/or medical nutrition therapy. There is not one universal diet with universal nutrient needs; nutrient needs change throughout the lifecycle and are altered in disease states. Dietitians are trained to have an extensive knowledge of these needs, and how can counsel individuals accordingly. Counseling is not an issue of free speech - it's a medical practice and should require a license.
1. http://www.bmj.com.ezproxy2.library.drexel.edu/content/346/bmj.e8539
2. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23643053
3. http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/32/2/295.full
4. http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/87/4/964.abstract
5. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15386813
In the alternative health field, one of the biggest topics to discuss is the controversy over saturated fat and dietary cholesterol. The current dietary recommendations set down by the Institute of Medicine have placed limits on the amount of cholesterol (<300mg) and saturated fat (<7% calories) that should be consumed in the diet. In response to this, the alternative health/low-carb/Paleo/high-fat movements have responded with some evidence showing that saturated fat intake does not strongly correlate with heart disease and, henceforth, conclude that foods, like eggs, rich in cholesterol and saturated fats, are a healthy, essential part of the diet. Never mind that they generally don't give a dosage (one egg a day, 3 a day, 4 a week, 12 a week??), or discuss how overconsumption of foods rich in saturated fat/cholesterol can displace other nutrient dense foods.
In general, I am pretty pro-egg (particularly omega 3 eggs) from a nutrition perspective (you can argue against from animal ethics and environment perspectives), when it comes to the average, active, healthy individual. For a good read on the research surrounding eggs, both epidemiological and controlled trials, check out Colby Vorland's analysis over at http://nutsci.org/category/eggs/.
I don't have your medical records/blood work, nor am I a registered dietitian, so I am not going to make any overarching statements about how many eggs should be consumed in your diet. This is where things start to change over from giving basic nutrition advice to counseling. Telling your healthy, fit/active, 20-something year old cousin to have an egg a day is one thing. Telling your diabetic 50-something father-in-law to consume eggs ad libitum because cholesterol/saturated fat recommendations are a sham is quite dangerous. When it comes to the internet, and talking about nutrition, you don't know who is reading your site, what their family history is, what their blood work looks like, what their fiber/omega 3 intake is, what their BMI is, how much they exercise, etc etc. Although I find it a bit extreme, this is why some states have gone after internet nutrition practitioners.
Why do I say don't recommend eggs for your diabetic 50-something father-in law? Let's look at some data. A recent review, in the British Journal of Medicine (1), concluded that higher egg consumption (>1/day) was not associated with increased risk of coronary heart disease or stroke. A second, published in Atherosclerosis (2), found the opposite result, building on previous research stating the same (3), stating that egg consumption increases the risk for CVD in a dose-dependent manner. Despite the two having different results, BOTH conclude that individuals with type 2 diabetes have increased risks of heart disease with increased egg consumption - individuals with diabetes have considerably altered lipoprotein metabolism (5), and need specialized nutrition. This isn't the first study to report a detrimental effect of egg consumption in diabetics (4). Individuals with diabetes can work with dietitians to reduce their consumption of saturated fat and cholesterol containing foods, and replace those displaced nutrients in other ways.
The moment nutrition goes from general statements "Eggs can be a healthy part of a diet" to "You should be consuming eggs", this becomes counseling and an ethical issue. Eggs are just one example of areas where extensive training and understanding of the scientific literature and medical nutrition therapy is essential when counseling individuals on nutrition. Counseling laws are there to protect consumers from individuals who are unqualified - those who have never been trained in reading research, statistics, biochemistry, and/or medical nutrition therapy. There is not one universal diet with universal nutrient needs; nutrient needs change throughout the lifecycle and are altered in disease states. Dietitians are trained to have an extensive knowledge of these needs, and how can counsel individuals accordingly. Counseling is not an issue of free speech - it's a medical practice and should require a license.
1. http://www.bmj.com.ezproxy2.library.drexel.edu/content/346/bmj.e8539
2. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23643053
3. http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/32/2/295.full
4. http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/87/4/964.abstract
5. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15386813
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