by Annette R. Karnash, R.N., M.N.
An interesting book detailing the link between diet and chronic conditions such as heart disease and diabetes is “Western Diseases: Their Emergence and Prevention” by Denis Burkitt MD and Hugh Trowell MD. Published in 1981, this book was based upon studies examining the rate of disease in various populations and the physician’s observations of primitive culture, thus formulating a sequence of events;
Stage 1: In cultures consuming traditional diets of whole, unprocessed foods, the rate of chronic conditions is quite low.
Stage 2: Beginning with eating a more Western diet, a sharp increase of obesity and diabetes was noted.
Stage 3: The more the traditional diet was abandoned, the more rare conditions such as varicose veins, constipation, appendicitis and hemorrhoids became extremely common.
Stage 4: As the full Western diet was established, chronic degenerative and potentially lethal conditions such as heart disease, cancer, osteoporosis, Rheumatoid arthritis and gout become extremely common.
Pima Indians, Native Americans, African Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanic Americans, Australian Aborigines and Pacific Islanders all have a high tendency for type 2 diabetes. When they follow a traditional diet and lifestyle practice of their original culture, the incidence of diabetes is low, but when the Western diet and lifestyle is adopted, diabetes increases. Continuous data verifies the role of the Western diet as key factors in virtually every chronic disease, especially obesity and diabetes.
