This is a transcript of a Dr. Jay Show broadcast on 1560TheGame. Dr. J. Michael Bennett is a Board Certified Orthopedic Surgeon and a Fellowship Trained Sports Medicine Physician serving patients from Katy, Fort Bend County, Metro Houston and Southeast Texas from offices in Houston, near the Houston Galleria and Sugar Land, TX. Call 281-633-8600 for an appointment.
Here’s the transcript of the fourth portion of the Show with Dr. Theodore S. Piliszek as a guest expert. Dr. Piliszek is a graduate of King’s College School of Medicine of the University of London and his practice is at Willowbrook Medical Center in Houston.
DR. J. MICHAEL BENNETT – You mentioned that certain populations in certain areas of the world do have this longevity and I think that diet makes a difference, too, because isn’t it true that in those certain populations there’s an intake of smaller meals, and it’s more fish incorporated with those meals in addition to wine?
 |
Fish & chips Not the healthy way to eat fish (Photo credit: David Ascher) |
DR. THEODORE PILISZEK – Absolutely. When you look around the world, fish is king. But it’s a question of the type of fish. So wild fish is of importance, but usually small fish because the small fish usually lives off plankton; in other words, they’re ingesting phytonutrients and vegetation and not other animals or rather, animal product. Whereas the bigger fish, unfortunately, to maintain their size – and we’re talking about anything over the size of about 10 inches to 12 inches – has to eat other fish. So it accumulates their impurities such as heavy metals.
DR. BENNETT – So you’ve got to watch out for the things like the salmons and the tuna, right, because that can actually have the mercury in regards to the tuna …
DR. PILISZEK – Mercury, yes, I don’t recommend tuna at all now, unfortunately. And some of the bottom feeders you’ve got to be careful because of aluminum and lead. So small fish are what you want. Sardines are great. Small mackerel is good. Anchovies are excellent, too. Some of the smaller salmon are fine. There are plenty of fish out there that we can eat.
DR. BENNETT – Going back to the point about certain parts of the world and their diets, there’s also the influence of garlic. I think garlic can make a difference in regards to playing a part in your health and I’ve heard of certain benefits in regards to immune aspects. There’s obviously some parts of the country or parts of the world, like in Italy or places like that, where they’re heavy on garlic and heavy on fish and drinking wine, but then they throw in the pasta and so it messes everything up, right?
DR. PILISZEK – Well, you know, moderation is the big thing. But we’re finding that sugar is the major bandit in the whole scene. Because, in fact, what usually happens with carbohydrates in pastas is they’re converted into sugar by our bodies too quickly. If we’re exercising adequately and utilizing those sugar calories it would be okay, but most of us don’t exercise enough to do that.
If you have questions about sports nutrition and sports medicine, call us at 281-633-8600 or send us an email.
