Purines

[Wedgewod]

I picked up a book entitled the Metabolic Typing Diet by Wolcott & Fahey.

According to the book, if you are a protein type (my type, based on the questionnaire) it means one of two things - either your cells tend to burn carbohydrates too quickly (meaning you're a fast oxidizer), or the parasympathetic branch of your autonomic nervous system is stronger and more dominant than the sympathetic branch. This means you need a high-protein intake in order to strengthen your sympathetic system, and in turn acidify your too-alkaline metabolism. Or you need protein to slow down your overly rapid cellular oxidation rate, thereby alkalinizing your too acid metabolism.

It says that protein types do very well on a diet that includes plenty of high density, high fat proteins known as high-purine proteins (e.g. chicken/beef liver, sardines).

Can someone explain what purines are and how they impact health? When I did an Internet search, I primarily found several health sites for gout and kidney ailments in which a low-purine diet is suggested. I want to make sure that it is safe to take in high purine meals on a daily basis.

Thanks,
BB

 

[Cylus]

Well, Gout and kidney/ureter stones are characterized by deposites of crystallized sodium urate, which forms from large amounts of uric acid in the fluids of the body. Uric acid itself is the product of purine metabolism so gout/stones results mostly from the body's inability to filter the uric acid out of the body via the kidneys. You shouldn't have to worry about purines unless your body has a natural or predisposed kidney problem or some various metabolic issues that result in high uric acid production.

Purines themselves are just nucleic acids and histidine can be synthesized from them.

Coming from a neuroscience major, it seems to me that they're trying to make a diet more complicated than it needs to be by basing it on the ANS. 'Course, if it works for you, all the better. Would be an interesting read, nonetheless

 

[micmic]

"Metabolic typing diet" ?

Please don't spend your valuable time with such ridiculous stuff.

It's only too dissapointing to think how many possibilities are there for hopeful future diet gurus:

- Eat according to your eye color
- Eat according to your height
- Eat according to your income
- Eat according to your libido & sexual preferences
- Eat according to your favorite soccer team
- Eat according to your sign

...etc ....etc ....etc