DEAR DOCTOR K: Can you explain the importance of glycemic load, as opposed to glycemic index, when judging carbohydrates?
DEAR READER: Carbohydrates, along with proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals, water and oxygen, are nutrients: We need them to live and grow. But even though we need carbohydrates, there still are carbohydrate-rich foods that are "good carbs" and "bad carbs."
DEAR DOCTOR K: I know fruits and vegetables make the healthiest snacks. But can packaged foods also be part of my healthy snack arsenal?
DEAR READER: There's no doubt that many packaged foods are not very healthy, so you're right to ask the question. At the same time, an increasing number of healthy packaged foods are available. Identifying them has been made a lot easier by the action of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
DEAR DOCTOR K: These days everything in the supermarket claims to contain whole grains, from sugary cereals to my favorite chips. How do I know which foods are healthy whole grains?
DEAR READER: "Whole grain" has become a healthy-eating buzz-phrase, and food companies aren't shy about using it. But some of the products we buy may not deliver the healthful whole-grain goodness we're expecting. And if sugary cereals can tout themselves as a whole-grain food, there's something amiss.
DEAR DOCTOR K: You've mentioned nuts as a healthy snack in previous columns. I thought nuts were high in fat and calories.
DEAR READER: Nuts are high in fat and calories, and they are also a great food. Am I nuts?
DEAR DOCTOR K: I've always enjoyed my food well-seasoned. Now my doctor wants me to cut down on my salt intake. Any suggestions?
DEAR READER: Salt (sodium chloride) is like many other things in our food: We need it, just not in the amounts we take in. For most of us, the salt in our diet is too much of a good thing.
DEAR DOCTOR K: I've read a lot about vitamin D deficiency in the news. How much do I need? Where can I get it?
DEAR READER: I try to make things clear, but the value of vitamin D supplements is complicated. Here it is in a nutshell.
DEAR DOCTOR K: I know lots of foods raise cholesterol levels. But are there any foods that lower cholesterol?
DEAR READER: Indeed there are. But before talking about them, it's worth saying a few words about foods that raise your cholesterol. Except for a very few people who inherit genes that cause them to have high cholesterol, most of us who have had a "cholesterol problem" (which includes me) do it to ourselves by the foods we eat.
DEAR DOCTOR K: What is an antioxidant? Should I be taking an antioxidant supplement?
DEAR READER: Something terrible often happens to medical scientists: A beautiful theory is murdered by a brutal gang of facts. The theory that vitamin pills with antioxidant powers — primarily vitamins A, C and E — could slow aging, fend off heart disease, improve flagging vision and curb cancer was beautiful and very plausible. As a result, some doctors urged their patients to take such vitamin pills daily.
DEAR DOCTOR K: Can you give me some tips for eating a healthy but satisfying lunch?
DEAR READER: Yes, I can, but first let me observe that many of my patients seem to think that what doctors recommend as a "healthy" diet is just today's latest fad. They think the advice could change next year. That's wrong. The advice I'll give you is based on 50 years of studies involving millions of people whose diets and health have been studied for decades. In other words, it has a strong scientific basis. At least as important, you can follow the advice and have delicious meals -- healthy food can taste really good!
DEAR DOCTOR K: It seems like everyone I know is doing a cleanse or detox diet. Is there any merit to them?
DEAR READER: As my readers know, I'm open to a number of non-traditional treatments. Some have been studied scientifically and found to be valuable. I'm open-minded, yet skeptical, about any proposed treatment -- mainstream or complementary -- until it's been shown to be of value in scientific studies.
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Dr. Anthony Komaroff is a practicing physician, Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, and Editor in Chief of Harvard Health Publications. Learn more »
Harvard Health Publications is the publishing division of Harvard Medical School, providing the general public with authoritative, trustworthy, and accessible health information. Learn more »
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