Alan Aragon

I don't know why Taubes gets so much play on HN. His science is bad and his studies are cherry picked [1] for whatever narrative he wants to sell. For a large group of people who usually are critical thinkers I'm surprised at what passes for real nutrition science on HN. IMHO, if you want to read good diet information from someone who not only knows what he is talking about, but also uses it in practice every day look up Alan Aragon [2]. I particularly like him because he is a research fanatic and understands the difference between high and low quality studies. BTW, I am in no way affiliated with him at all, but have read his stuff for years. [1] http://weightology.net/?p=265 -great read with LOTS of links to studies that Taubes conveniently (purposely?) ignored [2] http://www.alanaragonblog.com/

Dr. Lustig's argumentation is questionable at best. http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo… https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/brainwaves/is-sugar-really-toxic-… Eat less sugar? Sure! But don't do it because of Dr. Lustig's exaggerations and paranoia. Do it because sugar is calorie-heavy with no real benefit.

Lustig's position is tenuous at best, and at times he either carelessly misleads people or outright fabricates points to support his little crusade. Here's (http://sweetenerstudies.com/sites/default/files/resources/files/Scient… a take-down of a number of issues, logical and factual, in his recent book, and here (http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo… is a critique of his underlying argument about the unique threat posed by fructose (plus some follow-up based on comments and Lustig's own response to that piece http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/02/19/a-retrospective-of-the-fructo… Basically, even where Lustig is correct his points don't reflect any real-world situations.

Strongly recommend you read any of the numerous rebuttals to Lustig's psuedoscience, such as this one: http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo…

It is great indeed, and nobody would recommend people eat lots of sugar, but I found this a good article with some nuances about the specifics mentioned in that long video: http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo…

Gary Taubes is so incredibly wrong that it makes me sad. If you want to read some intelligent analysis of dieting/nutrition, I suggest reading Lyle McDonald (http://www.bodyrecomposition.com) and Alan Aragon (http://www.alanaragonblog.com).

I'm seeing two major factual problems with many of the comments here. 1. In terms of determining how much weight you are going to lose/gain. A calorie is a calorie. Calories in/calories out is the secret sauce to every successful weight loss diet, even keto. That is a simple fact, backed by all of the truly solid nutritional research in modern science. 2. If we are talking about lean body mass, body fat percentage goals, healthy eating habits or disease prevention, then we should have a talk about sugar. It is certainly a variable that deserves attention. However, it is not the devil... Fat is not the devil... Meat is not the devil... Carbs are not the devil... etc. If you don't believe me, if some pop science book has convinced you that sugar is the worst thing in the world, I ask that you look into the work of Alan Aragon. A good place to start would be the following article: http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo…

Lustig makes a few great points, but it's important to keep in mind there are some who argue he is a "fructose alarmist" and argue it's not as simple as "blaming fructose alone." A good quote from Alan Aragon: "I would add that fiber is only one of the numerous phytochemicals in fruit that impart health benefits. Thus, it’s not quite as simple as saying that fructose is evil, but once you take it with fiber, you’ve conquered the Dark Side." Some links: http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/02/19/a-retrospective-of-the-fructo… http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo… http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/research-review/straight-talk-about-h… I personally don't take sides with either. Like most things in the nutritional field, a healthy balance is more effective for me than trending behaviors and ideologies (i.e.: no-fat diet, "slow carb" diet, Atkins diet, etc.).

Googling 'Lustig criticism' gives you a good place to start. Though with nutritional science, everything is so far from consensus (and when there is a consensus, it's 20 years behind the science) that you should treat this as a jumping-off point to read the literature instead of an authoritative rebuttal. http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo… There's a section about halfway down where he discusses Lustig's claims that things like HFCS are metabolized differently and negatively.

"Googling it brings up things I don't like so I'll call them fabricated". What is fabricated about it exactly? This is a man who directly lies all the time. He claims "sugar is toxic" and "sugar is poison". These are both outright lies, and not claims any respected scientist would make. The data doesn't even support his modest claims, much less his poison lies. http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo…

And Lustig gets thoroughly demolished here by Alan Aragon, a guy known for very scientific approaches to stuff like this. Lustig is known for cherry-picking the stufies that support his arguments and dismissing those that don't. http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/02/19/a-retrospective-of-the-fructo…

Lustig just doesn't give up. He has already been crushed by Alan Aragon five years ago. http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/02/19/a-retrospective-of-the-fructo…

Obligatory rebuttal whenever this video is posted http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo…

Also check out this critisism: http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo… http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/02/19/a-retrospective-of-the-fructo…

Lustig has his critics[1]. In fact, seems the mainstream almost thinks of him as a quack (almost). Myself, I can't discern who's right and wrong. I can see that a lot of people are overstating their level of certainty. [1] http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo…

You are correct that fructose with fiber is pretty harmless, but that video is bullshit. See here: http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo… http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/02/19/a-retrospective-of-the-fructo…

Oh god. What the hell does "clean" mean. That's orthorexic nonsense. Unprocessed foods can be very helpful, but they aren't magically different kcal, If you eat too much potatoes and nuts (instead of cake) you'll still gain the same amount of fat (controlling for fiber and protein energy loss). http://www.wannabebig.com/diet-and-nutrition/the-dirt-on-clean-eating/ Regarding fructose: http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo… http://weightology.net/?p=434 Gluten is extremism overhyped, but sensitivity to it can be a problem.

most knowledgeable people disagree with him. for an intro look at his wikipage: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Lustig or i.e. http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo…

I'm a big fan of Alan Aragon, one of the country's leading experts on nutrition/health (in my and a lot of people's opinion). He did a pretty well informed takedown of Dr. Lustig's alarmist stance... check it out here and make up your own minds: http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo… http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/02/19/a-retrospective-of-the-fructo…

Dr. Lustig's rebuttals: http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo… http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo… http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo…

Compare: http://www.alanaragonblog.com/about/ to: http://chc.ucsf.edu/coast/faculty_lustig.htm I'm not saying that's dispositive, but why exactly is Alan Aragon more credible than a medical doctor and UCSF clinical pediatrics professor?

I'm not convinced yet. http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/02/19/a-retrospective-of-the-fructo…

A more scientific assessment of a a few different types of fruits is here: http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/01/29/the-bitter-truth-about-fructo…

Although I don't completely agree with the author, he accuses Lustig of a similar fallacy: using the popularity of his Youtube video to justify where the truth stands. See his retrospective of the original article: http://www.alanaragonblog.com/2010/02/19/a-retrospective-of-the-fructo… It has a decent (although one-sided) summarization of the comments from the original.