He's completely wrong about cholesterol you have zero dietary need for cholesterol, infact ALL the cholesterol you consume is actually broken down before it enters the body to simpler fat forms for assimilation. The whole "You need cholesterol" fad is a creation of our good friends over at the Weston Price foundation (either they created it, or have been a major sellers of this myth). You create all the cholesterol you need. Basically cholesterol is a fat transport system it takes fat from the liver (LDL type) & returns it to the liver (the HDL type) that's it, it's a way to carry fat in water easily & to get fat where it's needed, yes it's involved in hormone production etc, but again it's getting he fat to where it can be used to make hormones & in the creation on vitamin D as well, so it has functions, all of which are covered by the body making it's own! I've yet to see anyone on adequate calories (with a basic mix of fat, protein & carbs) every having too little cholesterol to be healthy (who didn't have a medical condition!).
He's also wrong about vitamin A conversion - you'd actually need a metabolic condition to not make enough vitamin A from carotenes - it's kind of similar to saying everyone should take insulin after a meal because diabetics do, just plain silliness!
I try to get every athlete onto B12 & DHA. I actually try to get them onto flax, walnuts, hemp seeds or simliar ALA source of omega 3 first thing in the morning, then take a DHA sometime later in the day. If you're serious about maximum results (that is most muscle gain, strength gain or fat loss) then these are vital, that is for the meat eater, veggie & vegan, I have them all on them!
For athletes I do suggest some saturated fat. A couple of easy sources are palm fat (only go for orang-utan friendly version if possible) & coconut fat. For guys it's something I'd suggest you try out anyway as adding a little saturated actually does boost your testosterone levels. At 21 this probably won't be an issue, but as you age it may be something you want to think about. You don't want to go crazy, a teaspoon is a good start & as it's ultra stable coconut is good if you like cooking with oil, or coconut milk is a great reason to cook Thai
(one note with coconut milk, do not choose the low fat, it's the fat you're after).
Zinc & iron are only an issue if your not eating a few zinc & iron containing foods - just google here for zinc & here for iron & pick a couple of foods to add (if you're not having them already).
Basically the guy has been sucked in by the tissue of lies spouted by the Weston Price Foundation people. How they work is take some truth "Eat whole foods", "eat fruits" & mix it in with lies "Animal fat is an essential fatty acid", "Vegans teeth fall out & have low energy". You can see studies on longterm vegans. Their health markers are much better than average! The main issue that lowers our average lifespan as a group is low B12 intake & Essential fatty acid intake (at least that's the current thinking), so if we cover those, eat mainly wholefoods we will live long, active, healthy lives.
You also do NOT need to soak & sprout any & every grain. Sure sprouting & soaking increases availability of nutrients, but overall you will still get enough zinc & iron eating wholefoods that include non-sprouted or soaked grains - again another lie pushed by our friends over at Western Price. Soak or sprout as much as you like to get more 'bang for your buck' with your food, but do not get overly concerned & definitely do NOT avoid foods just because they contain unsprouted grains, you still get amazing benefits, just a little less than if you soaked or sprouted them first.
As a side note the Weston Price Foundation do not represent the views of Weston Price himself who in fact once wrote a letter pleading that the children of his relatives be given a vegetarian diet - how's that for a double-think from a lobby group financed primary by the grass fed meat & milk industry!!! Please bare in mind these guys are paid to write anti-soya stuff, rant against grains & even to argue against meat that is not grass fed - it's their income, they have a serious & in my view dangerous agenda (some people on their side { Dr mercola for example } have been forced to remove false claims from their personal sites by the FDA on several occasions for selling quackery as a medicinal product), you can find countless debunking's of every WPF claim just do some google digging.
Home 
