25 Comments
What Is the #1 Dietary Cause of Death?
If you knew something you ate (or didn't eat) could kill you – would you stop eating, eat less of it, or on the flip side make sure you eat it regularly if it's essential?
I would hope so.
For example, if I told you eating an apple every single day could extend your life by 50 years…and that's ALL you had to do, would you do it? Of course. Well, unfortunately it's not THAT easy, BUT…there is something you can do that would also help you extend your life.
So here is today’s nutrition quiz .
What single dietary factor is responsible for the most deaths each year?
It may be something we’re either deficient in or eating too much of.
And it is responsible for approximately 102,000 deaths every single year.
Guesses?
May 3rd, 2010 at 5:41 am
Strychnine?
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May 3rd, 2010 at 5:49 am
My guess would be too much salt. I never quite understand why people even put salt shakers on the table. There is already way too much sodium in foods before we start adding our two shakes.
Terri Kolter
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May 3rd, 2010 at 5:51 am
According to the article "The Preventable Causes of Death in the United States: Comparative Risk Assessment of Dietary, Lifestyle, and Metabolic Risk Factors" in the Public Library of Science, the answer is Salt.
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May 3rd, 2010 at 6:02 am
Sugar?
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May 3rd, 2010 at 6:13 am
We eat too much Bad Fat!
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May 3rd, 2010 at 6:14 am
Salt
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May 3rd, 2010 at 6:22 am
Sugar
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May 3rd, 2010 at 6:29 am
Sodium
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May 3rd, 2010 at 6:37 am
I'm going to guess lack of Vitamin D?
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May 3rd, 2010 at 6:48 am
Hydrogenated fats
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May 3rd, 2010 at 6:57 am
Too much salt. Sigh. I'm hooked on salt & sugar.
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May 3rd, 2010 at 7:07 am
Is it SUGAR!
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May 3rd, 2010 at 7:11 am
transfats
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May 3rd, 2010 at 7:23 am
is it sugar
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May 3rd, 2010 at 8:29 am
Sugar
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May 3rd, 2010 at 9:29 am
Too much cholesterol or sugar are the two things that come to mind at first, but when I googled it, I found high salt intake… is that right?
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May 3rd, 2010 at 10:29 am
Sugar
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May 3rd, 2010 at 10:47 am
salt
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May 3rd, 2010 at 11:28 am
Well…this is a pretty tough question lol. My heart wants to say sugar, but my brain tells me it is Na+. therefore, my guess is Na+
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May 3rd, 2010 at 12:11 pm
I believe that the answer is sugar. It is horrible for everyone, but everyone is still eating it.
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May 3rd, 2010 at 2:23 pm
in the world, my guess is purification of water. In America, I am guessing high fructose corn syrup, b/c diabetes and heart disease kill many Americans yearly.
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May 3rd, 2010 at 3:01 pm
My guess would be SUGAR!
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May 3rd, 2010 at 5:53 pm
Well, my answer really doesn't fit the question for adults, but I do know that not breastfeeding affects mortality greatly…. when you add up all the deaths related to illnesses that are preventable by breastmilk, including SIDS (rarely do breastfed babies die of SIDS), premature conditions, respiratory illnesses, digestive diseases, etc…. but actually the number is alot greater than 102,000! When I think of the most nutritious, medicinal, life-saving food on the planet, it is BREASTMILK!
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May 3rd, 2010 at 7:36 pm
How can it be salt? Salt is not bad. In fact it gets a bad rap, when it shouldn't.
Salt does not cause high blood pressure. Now if someone has high BP, they should watch out.
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May 3rd, 2010 at 7:36 pm
<p>How can it be salt? Salt is not bad. In fact it gets a bad rap, when it shouldn't.</p> <p>Salt does not cause high blood pressure. Now if someone has high BP, they should watch out. </p>
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