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I agree its a very insightful critique, one I have read before and has caused me to follow up on sources in both the crit itself and in the China Study in particular. Basically, this is the most organized argument that has me making a pretty wide range of caveats in things I have written or have had quoted here in this thread.
For me, rather than focusing on the deep science, I'm trying to look at my own experience. On the question of whether the dietary changes I have made are a "magic bullet" or merely "just a ton healthier than before," I look at them piece by piece:
-Replace white and processed grains and sugars with whole/natural varieties
Inconvenience is moderate, especially when eating out, but it's really hard to argue that this change wouldn't be a good one for anyone, on any diet, trying to deal with any combination of weight loss, blood sugar issues, or related disease.
-Reduce oil as much as possible, reducing saturated fat especially
I'm not personally sold that this is a powerful element in the overall plan, but it is undeniably true that oil -- even "good" oils like olive oil -- adds absolutely nothing of nutritive value, and is extremely high in calories. If you can live with the substitutes (to varying degrees, I have found this either completely painless up to moderately so) then again, it's not tough to argue that lower oil is probably better for just about anyone.
-Eat more healthy green vegetables, nutrient-dense plants, fiber rich fruit and legumes
There's really not a lot of controversy here, I think the only approach that really shuns this at all is the ketosis-based carb-avoidance, which most people advocate for weight loss rather than true overall health. I don't think there is any dietician or nutritionist who would say that eating more spinach, romaine, celery, beans, citrus, and so forth is anything but great for you, especially when you contemplate the other less healthy options that these foods inevitably replace.
-Eat less, or no, animal products and eschew animal protein from the diet
Controversy here, and many see this as a massive sacrifice, I understand. I expected it to be when I made the decision to try it. I haven't found it to be all that hard, though my combination of motivation and family commitment may give me a big advantage here.
In any event, there's relatively little doubt that replacing most of the animal products in your diet with other things is probably better. Whether you get most or all of that benefit from switching within the animal range to supposedly healthier options is unclear to me (as I have said before) but I have basically concluded that I can do this myself, and I'm convinced that it's manageable, even if it might be something more than absolutely necessary to get the health benefits I'm looking for.
That's where I land. I actually enjoy reading about these topics for fairly obvious reasons... and this thread has given me a chance to do more thinking, as well as writing. Hope this talk keeps going.
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