Kevin: When we go to the grocery store, and we see all those low-fat, no-fat, net carbs, everything you just said, you know, what’s the policy?
PHOENIX: Oh, stay away from them. Stay away from because…here’s the thing again. Yeah, it’s not, which is why I’m so surprised there are still so many on the shelves. I’m so… I’m still so fascinated when I go to the grocery store to see what they’re perpetuating on the unsuspecting consumer. And so many consumers, with all due respect, don’t have the time to do what I did to research a few things. They want to trust what the food manufacturers tell them. So, they put on the label, “It’s fat-free.” For those who think he’s… fat, well, they’re going to grab him. And they’ll probably overeat it because they think, “Well, it’s not fat.” And it’s the same with net carburetor and impact carburetor. It’s all BS, if I may say so.
Kevin: Yes, sure.
PHOENIX: Because whatever you have denied that, there is some kind of etiquette deception behind it. I tell my clients, “Look, do they ever put that on a good tomato or a good fruit?” No. Because your goal is, in those foods, really, I mean, how does the food business stay in business? They do it by selling their food. And how do they make sure to sell it and make us a loyal loyal customer? They would have to make us addicted. And how do they make us addicted? Hiding sugar and under all kinds of names. So for those foods, again, it’s not about eating good, healthy fats. I’m not talking about the trans fats found in processed potato chips and crackers and the like. I’m talking about good healthy fat. So, it’s all about eating those good, healthy fats and staying away from all the misleading labels that go under low-fat products, you know, net carbs and impact carbs.
Kevin: Yes. And speaking a bit about good fats and bad fats, which are the good ones, a lot of people, here, good fats, good fats. Well, what is it, you know?
PHOENIX: Well, good fat, Kevin, it would be things like eggs, whole eggs. Eggs are one of the most perfect foods for those who are concerned about cholesterol. Another myth. I talked about it in great detail in the book, which is to say, you have to eat good, healthy fats, and with good, healthy fats comes good, healthy cholesterol. So, eggs, the whole eggs.
Kevin:And why have people been saying that, you know, egg whites…
PHOENIX: Just egg whites?
Kevin: Yeah.
PHOENIX: Well, that was perpetuated many years ago by the cereal industry and I would say that it was a great success, right?
Kevin: Yeah.
PHOENIX: Because it really is. For those who really understand how the body works, again, you have to activate insulin because the body… gets fat. And healthy fat doesn’t trigger that insulin response.
Kevin: AHA.
PHOENIX: So by eating good, healthy cholesterol, you have to eat cholesterol with every meal, Kevin, to stop your body’s internal production. And if you don’t eat good, healthy cholesterol with every meal, your body will make it from the carbohydrates you eat, and that’s not a good way. That is what will lead to the lining of the arteries.
Kevin: OK. So your body is creating those hormones from cholesterol?
PHOENIX: Yes. Your body will create cholesterol on its own. It has its own internal mechanism to do it. If you don’t, if you don’t eat foods that contain it, which is what happens, then when you eat it, it shuts down its own production.
Kevin: OK.
PHOENIX: But some other healthy fats are olive oil, extra virgin olive oil, grapeseed oil, flaxseed oil, nuts and seeds, no salt please, with none of that smoked, ya you know, and salty things. Avocados, organic mayonnaise, fresh white cheeses, your own mozzarella, feta and goat. Those are all wonderful good healthy fats. And of course in your fish, like salmon and things like that, you’ll get health, I see it more as a source of protein, but you’re also getting good sources of fat.
Kevin: AHA. What about fish oils and flaxseed oils, are they good too?
PHOENIX: Absolutely, for your Omega-3s and the 6s and things like that, I recommend, you know, in my book I give a list, I do chapters on, just a chapter on great low GI carbs.
Kevin: AHA.
PHOENIX: And then a list of foods someone would find in my house on any given day and that’s a list of all kinds, whether it’s good healthy fats, low GI carbs, different foods, different fish for your Omega-3 and things like that. So… I’ve had a lot of people say, “Oh, you’ve got to write a cookbook.” But for me it was more important to give people the tools to teach them to think for themselves because that will take a lifetime versus, who lives off a cookbook? I mean, it’s not going to happen.
Kevin: Yes. Could you give us a snapshot of some of the things that are in your house right now?
PHOENIX: Oh, of course. I just… hey now, no, it’s… This morning, I had three eggs and mozzarella cheese…
Kevin: AHA.
PHOENIX: …with a little tomato and olive oil.
Kevin: AHA.
PHOENIX:I always have, I have about two dozen eggs, I use about two dozen eggs a week, and they’re also a great snack for people who say, “Oh, I don’t know what I’ll have for a snack.” .” Boil some eggs, they make a great snack.
Kevin: AHA.
PHOENIX: I have some raw almonds, I make my own trail mix, I usually have a variety of almonds, macadamia nuts, walnuts, I mix them together and make my own trail mix.
Kevin: Oh great.
PHOENIX: I have fresh whipped cream that I put in my decaf green tea, which I have right here topped with a little bit of cinnamon, absolutely wonderful, better than any latte.
Kevin: So, fresh whipped cream, you mean, straight from the farm, or…
PHOENIX: Yeah. Fresh whipped cream which, you know, isn’t spray cream, but real, whole, fresh whipped cream.
Kevin: AHA.
PHOENIX: And because? Because, even though I try to limit my intake of any cow product, it’s a good, healthy source of fat, and it’s carb-free, which means zero sugar. So…
Kevin: I have you.
PHOENIX: …it’s not about non-fat milk or skim milk which, again, is a carbohydrate and as a liquid carbohydrate, it will affect your blood sugar even more dramatically. So for me, it’s whole whipped cream.
Kevin: And could you explain that a bit more? I think a lot of people don’t realize…
PHOENIX: The liquid carbohydrate?
Kevin: …that milk, dairy, lactose is a sugar and that there are carbohydrates.
PHOENIX: Well, not exactly, Kevin, and the thing is two just like the fruit. When I say to people, “Oh,” I mean, fruit juice, they say, “Oh, are you telling us it’s unhealthy?” I said, “No, no, no. It’s how you consume those carbs.” Because fruit has fructose, which is fruit sugar.
Kevin: AHA.
PHOENIX: Milk has lactose, which is milk sugar. So when you have, it’s not just a carbohydrate, but like fruit juice and milk, you’ll have a liquid carbohydrate. And as a liquid carbohydrate, it will affect your blood sugar much more dramatically. Because? Because it’s nothing more than liquid. It’s going to go much faster into the bloodstream. It has nothing, the body does not need time to break it down.
Kevin: AHA.
PHOENIX: So, that’s why I recommend, of course, I want you to eat fruit. There are better fruits than others and mine, when I’m really working with clients who have excess insulin which is where that weight that you carry around your abdomen is the most damaging to your health, it’s all about your lower GI fruits, that, for me, the berries. I highly recommend any of the berries. But again, eat them in their natural state. Do not take them in juice form. One has only to look at any bottle. When you walk into the supermarket, Kevin, you can take any bottle, look at all the fruit juices on the market, just read the panel. Look how much sugar is in there and look how many servings are in there. There is often surprisingly at least thirty if not sixty to eighty grams of sugar in one of those juice products. Again, it’s all about taking carbohydrates in their natural form. Fruits and things like that, so the body has its ability to break down fiber, which will help reduce the blood sugar responses that it will cause.
Kevin: So these juices, when you see them in the grocery store, do they say 100 percent juice?
PHOENIX: Yes, but they can say 100 percent juice or they can say whatever, but still, it’s just plain sugar water.
