You can avoid these problems if you buy free-range chickens. They’re healthier and lower in total fat with 100 percent more essential fats (EFAs). Free-range eggs contain 400 percent more EFAs than ordinary eggs. Omega-3-enriched eggs have even more. Two eggs a day provide good quality protein without elevating cholesterol.

Most oceans, lakes, and streams are polluted. Still, wild rather than farmed fish, are your best choice for animal protein. Much farmed fish is overcrowded and low in EFAs. Choose smaller fish. They have fewer pesticides and mercury than larger varieties. If you’re taking fish-oil supplements, make sure they’re free from both mercury and pesticides. The essential fatty acids included in Vitality Plus vitamin packs (800-728-2288) and OmegaThera, by ProThera, (888-488-2488) are guaranteed to be contaminant-free.

Soy is a healthy low-fat protein you can safely eat once a day. Choose organic or non-GMO (genetically modified) soy. We don’t know the safety of genetically modified foods. They’re not safe enough to be sold in Europe, but safe enough for U.S. corporations to sell them to you. Until we know they’re safe, eat only non-GMO soy products. Soy contains healthy plant estrogens that get into our estrogen receptors and block the uptake of harmful estrogens. The safety of soy has been greatly debated. I still think it’s a healthy protein in moderation.

Legumes, or beans, are high in both protein and unrefined carbohydrates. To slow down their conversion from starch to sugar, add healthy fats, such as one teaspoon of olive oil or flaxseed oil, to them so they turn into sugar more slowly.

Bottom Line: Get enough protein. Eat more carbs if you’re thin and burn energy faster. Eat fewer carbs if you have a weight problem. And, most importantly, concentrate on the quality of all the foods you eat.

Atkins, Robert C, MD. Dr. Atkins’ Age-Defying Diet Revolution, St. Martin’s Press, 2000.

Cherniske, Stephen, MS. The Metabolic Plan, Ballantine Books, 2003.

Gittleman, Ann Louise, MS, CNS. The Fat Flush Plan, McGraw-Hill, 2002.

Smith, Timothy J., MD. Renewal, The anti-aging revolution, St. Martin’s Press, 1998.

Williams, Roger J. Biochemical Individuality, John Wiley & Sons, Inc, 1959.

Wright, Jonathan V. “The ‘original human diet’ secret to erasing cancer, diabetes, obesity, and more,” Nutrition & Healing, January 2003.

Proteins in Common Foods
Beef (4 oz lean ground) 28 grams
Chicken (3.5 oz lean) 30 grams
Egg (1) 6 grams
Garbanzo/Kidney beans (1/2 cup) 7 grams
Peanut butter (2 Tbsp) 7.7-9 grams
Protein powder (1 Tbsp, rice) 12 grams
Soybeans (1/2 cup dry roasted) 34 grams
Soybeans (1/2 cup boiled Edamame) 11 grams
Tofu (3 oz) 6-7 grams
Tuna (3 oz water packed) 25 grams
Veggie Burger (Amy’s/Gardenburger) 12-15 grams