What is your opinion of the Body Ecology Diet? Is it "better/worse" than GAPS or SCD and why?

ANy thoughts on the 80-10-10 diet by Dr Graham? His theory on candida is vastly different from the conventional thought.
http://foodnsport.com/testimonials/Beat-Candida-Overgrowth-Jacky-Alles.php

http://www.foodnsport.com/faq.php

The second link is full of misinformation and misrepresentations of the facts.  Too many to cover so I will just cover a few of the highlights:

"There is no essential nutrient in meat, grains, legumes, or dairy that is not also available in fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds, and in a form that is easier to digest."

What about true B₁₂, which cannot e derived from fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds?  This is why strict vegetarians tend to get sick after 2-6 years when they use up their liver reserves of B₁₂.

"Most people on the standard American diet experience transit times of 72 hours or more, during which time their food ferments and putrefies. The resulting foul gas and unpleasant smelling feces highlight the fact tat fermentation and putrefaction are taking place in the colon."

Fermentation happens regardless.  The intestinal flora ferment fibers (long chain sugar molecules) to break them down in to simple sugars they can feed on.

"Applying heat to foods provides no nutritional benefit to the food and is detrimental to the person ingesting the cooked food. There are reported instances where, by heating food, certain nutrients are more easily released, like lycopene from tomatoes."

Cooking also serves other purposes such as making the food easier to digest and reducing or eliminating potentially dangerous compounds such as goitrogens and enzyme inhibitors.  Over cooking food though can lead to significant nutrient loss and production of other harmful substances.

"Eating cooked meat creates excess uric acid and ammonia in the body, both of which are toxic to the system. The proteins in cooked food become denatured, and, as a result, the polypeptide bonds cannot be broken down into amino acids."

Great example of misinformation and contradictions.  Uric acid is formed from purines and amino acids found in plants as well as animal proteins.  We also get uric acid from other sources such as the destruction of old cells.  The uric acid is then used as the body's primary antioxidant.  I addressed this here:

http://curezone.com/forums/fm.asp?i=1449695#i

"These polypeptides are treated as foreign invaders and must be excreted through the kidneys."

If the polypeptides are being excreted intact then how are they being broken down to form uric acid?  Again a contradiction in his claims.

The cell wall of the kidneys doesn't allow for easy transport of these substances, causing the distress that leads to kidney stones and eventually to kidney failure.

First of all there are many different forms of kidney stones with different causes.  Secondly, the same question of how is uric acid being raised if these polypeptides are not being broken down.  And finally all I have to say is that he does not understand the concept or causes of kidney failure.

"Cooked grains cause fermentation in the body that produces gas, alcohol, and acetic acid; protoplasmic poisons that kill every cell with which they come into contact."

Again, fermentation occurs REGARDLESS if the grains or cooked or not.  And acetic acid is one of the beneficial acids produced in the fermentation by the flora that help with nutrient absorption and fighting off pathogens.

"While excess protein consumption is linked to many acidic conditions in the body and resultant diminishing health, there is not even a medical name for the condition of underproteinization. The acidity caused by excess protein consumption must be counterbalanced by the body. It is done by taking the precious alkaline mineral, calcium, from the bloodstream and bones, setting the stage for osteoporosis and tooth decay. "

Another common misrepresentation that I have addressed in the past:

http://curezone.com/forums/fm.asp?i=1502701#i

Acidosis is very rare since the body has so many means of pH regulation.  Respiration is the primary means.  The body would have to go EXTREMELY acidic to get to the point where dietary acids could affect the bone.  Although bone is constantly being broken down and rebuilt to keep it healthy.  And the breakdown process does involve acids generated by bone cells.

Also keep in mind that fruit sugars and other carbohydrates also lead to the production of acid.  As they are broken down they form carbon dioxide and water, thus carbonic acid.  And fructose (fruit sugar) increases uric acid levels, which he is claiming is a toxin.

"However, because cooked grains create a condition known as acid toxemia, these same people will instead, suffer from a higher risk of arthritis and cancer."

What he is referring to as "acid toxemia" is acidosis, which I addressed above.  It is extremely rare.  Secondly, there are over 120 forms of arthritis, and acidosis does not cause these.  Nor does acidosis cause cancer.  This is just another common acid-alkaline myth.

"I have candida or a yeast infection. How can I eat so much fruit?

Excess fat is the culprit in candida, not sugar, per se. When fat levels in the blood rise, so does blood sugar, because excess fat inhibits insulin from performing its function of escorting sugar out of the bloodstream. The excess fat lines the blood vessel walls, the cells, insulin receptor sites, the sugar molecules themselves, and the insulin with a thin coating of fat, thus blocking and inhibiting normal metabolic activity."

Insulin resistance involves more than simply body fat levels.  Hormones as well as certain minerals also play a role.  Chromium and magnesium are essential for maintaining insulin sensitivity:

http://curezone.com/forums/fm.asp?i=1528348#i

http://curezone.com/forums/fm.asp?i=1535880#i

http://curezone.com/forums/fm.asp?i=1733326#i

In addition, the author completely overlooks the fact that not all dietary sugar is absorbed.  Some of it remains in the intestines where it can directly feed Candida.

"Yeast, or candida, is a constant presence in the blood; it serves as a life preservation mechanism, blooming when there is an excess of sugar in the blood stream to bring blood sugar down to a non-threatening level."

Not one bit of this is even close to the truth!!!  Candida is rarely ever present in the blood, and is extremely dangerous when it is.

"These spices are referred to as "excito-toxins," in that they stimulate and excite our taste buds, but deliver no nutritional benefit. In most cases they act as an irritant and cause the body to produce mucous to protect itself from them."

Spices are not toxins, and in fact are quite beneficial being not only antiseptic and antioxidant, but often also anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, etc.

"Current research shows that B12 changes to an analog and unusable form where it is found in dehydrated foods."

Plants do not contain actual B₁₂, all they contain are B₁₂ analogues.

"At the same time, frozen and ice-cold foods kill the bacteria in the gut that are responsible for the production of vitamin B-12."

LOL!!! First of all people are not going to eat most foods frozen.  And even when they do the foods are not going to be frozen by the time they hit the stomach let alone the intestines where the flora (bacteria) reside.

In addition, freezing cracks the cell walls of plants increasing the availability of their nutrients.

"Can I use vinegar in my salad dressing?

Vinegar is diluted acetic acid, commonly known to be a poison in its pure form. Acetic acid stimulates the thyroid gland to pull phosphorous from the adrenal glands to negate the effects of acetic acid in the system. Depleted phosphorous results in impaired function of the adrenal glands and thus the entire endocrine system. The outcome of all this can include body odor, pains in the heart, rapid pulse, increased mucous production, and headaches. Repetitive use will also result in hardening of the liver."

More utter nonsense.  In fact, the same bacteria that produce the B₁₂ also produce acetic acid as one of the several healthy acids that help control pathogens and help with nutrient absorption.  There is more that can be addressed, but as we can see already the whole premise of the diet is based on false and misleading information.