Salt
Salt could be a problem if you are already salt-sensitive, however if you are following an insulin-stabilizing diet, salt poses less threat. Too much insulin causes water retention and controlled insulin promotes water release from the kidneys. Salt may only a problem if someone is salt sensitive or already has high blood pressure. Insulin causes water retention by activating aldosterone, a hormone that causes the kidneys to hold onto salt. Since water follows salt, you will retain more water by eating a diet excessively high in carbohydrates. Insulin also acts on steroid hormones, resulting in high blood pressure and weight gain.
Cholesterol
Food labels constantly state “cholesterol free.” This subliminally transforms into a collective belief that makes people think there’s something wrong with cholesterol. Even food items derived strictly from plant sources frequently state “cholesterol free.” If the public was more nutrition savvy, they would automatically know that cholesterol only comes from animal based products.
There are still medical posters being produced and hanging inside hospitals that state “heart disease is a consequence of high cholesterol.” This perspective has already changed in the medical field, yet it takes decades for the mainstream to change.
Maintaining high amounts of insulin (from too many carbohydrates) is what causes the overproduction of cholesterol by the liver. The link between cholesterol and heart disease has been overthrown years ago due to lack of evidence. Half of the people who have heart disease do not have high levels of cholesterol. The initial onset of heart disease is now said to be from inflammation of the artery walls, not from elevated cholesterol. Cholesterol only creates a problem if it becomes damaged by free radicals and then becomes lodged in the already inflamed arterial walls. Cholesterol acts as sort of a band-aid and adheres to the vascular wall only after the initial onslaught of inflammation.
Cholesterol is a waxy substance that holds every cell in your body together. Without cholesterol, your body would fall to pieces. Limiting cholesterol from the diet only causes the liver to produce cholesterol at a faster pace because there is a direct feedback loop. 80-85% of the cholesterol in the human body is made by the liver and the other 15-20% comes from the diet. The main simulator of cholesterol in the body is insulin, which is released in response to incoming carbohydrate. Insulin causes the liver to chemically transform carbohydrates directly into cholesterol.
Calcium
Calcium is only one substance and bone is made of many other things. Bone consists of other minerals like phosphorus and magnesium and also contains the protein “collagen,” the same ingredient used to make gelatin. Most people do not realize that many whole foods like meat, cheese, fruit, vegetables, grains, legumes are good sources of calcium. There are many other factors that determine bone health than calcium alone. The best way to prevent weak bones is to stabilize your blood sugar, perform daily exercise, reduce stress, and take a daily fish oil supplement each day.