On 06/13/2008 I asked:

The dietary analysis of broccoli for one "stalk [ 152 grams]" as :

fat 1 g, p 4 grams, & C 6 grams [ 10 grams minus 4 grams fiber ]

Therefore if you ate sufficient amounts of broccoli to satisfy your particular "block" requirement - the protein and carbs would be balanced - yes ?

Fats would be short but obviously can be compensated for.

Which leads to another question : What type of fats are contained in broccoli ? I know they are not saturated - are they polyunsaturated ?



Fifty something views later and no answer I added :




Fifty- something have looked at this and no one has the answer ?

Maybe I could be a little more clear - what has me a bit puzzled is that broccoli is always listed in any Zone appendix of food catagories as a "carbohydrate".

It seems like there should be a catagory of foods that are "Mixed" maybe ? or, "Balanced" or, "Balanced/Near Balanced" ?

[ Spinach, Aspergas, and Cauliflower are similar ]

Dr. Sears explains about the differences between carbs and proteins in the first Zone book, I believe. Here's the deal as I recall.

Many protein sources have carbs in them. Carbs often have protein in them. Dr. Sears' suggestion is to ignore the proteins in *most* carbs and ignore the carbs in *most* proteins.

The reason is that, while there are some proteins in veggies like broccoli, the proteins are often bio-inaccessible. Due to the fact that there is so much fiber, and due to the fact that the protein content is often a bit low, he recommends simply ignoring these carbs because there is often an insignificant amount to be absorbed by the body.

There are some foods that Dr. Sears considers mixed. Milk and yougurt are both good examples. In these foods, you would consider both the proteins and the carbs. Dr. Sears may have provided some more explanation as to why some foods are consider mixed, but it escapes me.

So, for nearly all fruits and veggies, you should only consider the carbohydrates (minus the fiber), and for protein sources, you should consider the protein and fats. You should supplement your diet with additional fats to assure that you are getting the right quantity.

I hope this helps.

Thanks,

It's been so long since I read the first book - your response brought it all back about the "mixed" foods.

I still wonder about things like Romaine lettuce which have very little of either carbs or protein - that is - just how "inaccessable" is the protein ?

With such a miniscule amount of carbs it wouldn't take much protein to "balance" ?

I think Dr. Sears may have also proclaimed the virtues of animal protein sources over vegetable ones, but I can't remember. Also, I have not read his Soy Zone book, and it seems there may be a bit more info in that book about this topic.

As for Romaine, it's hard to count it at all. I think there are something like 45 heads of romaine to 1 block of carbs. :)

Hmmmmm ... think you're right about the "types" of protein too ... have to get out the original book again.


One head of Romaine is very low [ in everything - well except fiber ] but it's exaclty ONE block of carbs.

I bought the Zone Blocks book that lists several foods in blocks and describes the grams in each area (protien, carb, fat). Some foods seem rather depressing and it is obvious just to "say no". Such as store bought cheesecake. 1/50 th of a slice is okay. What is that; a lick? I just decided cheesecake was not that important in my life. Fruit has become my dessert and it hasn't bothered me.