The Weston A. Price Foundation

From their website:

The Weston A. Price Foundation is a nonprofit, tax-exempt charity founded in 1999 to disseminate the research of nutrition pioneer Dr. Weston Price, whose studies of isolated nonindustrialized peoples established the parameters of human health and determined the optimum characteristics of human diets. Dr. Price’s research demonstrated that humans achieve perfect physical form and perfect health generation after generation only when they consume nutrient-dense whole foods and the vital fat-soluble activators found exclusively in animal fats.

Their site has so incredibly many resources you could spend hours and hours exploring and reading. Because of this very fact, they have an entire page dedicated to helping beginners navigate their site. If you want to take a beginners tour, click here!

Another huge part of their foundation are the campaigns they maintain. There are three big ones: Real Milk, Soy Alert,, and Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund.


Here is a little bit about the actual journal they put out:

The Foundation's quarterly journal, Wise Traditions in Food, Farming, and the Healing Arts is dedicated to exploring the scientific validation of dietary, agricultural and medical traditions throughout the world. It features illuminating and thought-provoking articles on current scientific research; human diets; non-toxic agriculture; and holistic therapies. The journal also serves as a reference for sources of foods that have been conscientiously grown and processed.

You can view many of their journal articles here:  http://www.westonaprice.org/Journal/



Sally Fallon Morell Explaining the Mission of WAPF:


More videos here.

Obviously a huge part of this foundation has to do with nutrition and diet. Here are their Dietary Guidelines and their Dietary Dangers.

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An excerpt from the President's Message: An Open Letter to Michael Pollan -

Why not devote your next book, or at least an article, to the Weston A. Price Foundation? You mention us in The Omnivore's Dilemma, but don't accurately describe our message. Come to our next conference where you will learn about traditional dietary wisdom, soak up our enthusiasm and taste real sodas. Visit some of our chapter leaders and find out how they are reconnecting thousands of consumers to grass-based farms that produce not only meat but raw milk. Find out why our members have jars of strange bubbling concoctions on their kitchen counters. Help us celebrate our rejection of industrial misinformation couched as science and our embrace of traditional fats, starting with the deep yellow butter of grass-fed cows. Apply your fine journalistic skills to describing this nascent movement, a movement that will return food happiness and good health to the industrial age. And then tuck your toes under one of our nutrient-dense traditional meals, loaded with good fats, velvety stocks and satisfying condiments. Watch that angst dissipate, replaced by a sense of oneness with the natural world.

The omnivore's dilemma is not in fact a dilemma at all, but a construct of false nutritional doctrine. We need investigative journalists like you to help us clear away the misinformation. Please accept our invitation to a meal.

Sally Fallon Morell
President
The Weston A. Price Foundation

What a great letter!  We like Sally.  I think I'd probably rather have dinner with her than Micheal, tho I have an intellectual "crush" on them both.

I think WPF gets a lot of attention for it's anti-soybean stance, and that's actually a little corner of their philosophy, not the whole thing. 

So I like and respect the WPF, and believe they have been vindicated on their stance towards palm and coconut oil and perhaps Vitamin A and Cod Liver Oil as well. I do want to mention that Gary Null, who I greatly admire as well, is firmly against their diet. I suppose it just boils down to the classic meat eater versus vegetarian diet. I would just like to hear them debate the points someday.

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Video of Sally Fallon Morell explaining the mission of Weston A. Price Foundation!



Consider becoming a member. My family is healthier today and WAPF helped us greatly along the way! I know yours will, also!

Here is Paul Wheaton's podcast interview with Sally Fallon Morell, the WAPF founder and president. It focuses on her advocacy of farm fresh milk for its nutritional benefits:

http://www.richsoil.com/permaculture/2616-podcast-236-interview-with-sally-fallon-on-raw-milk/

Enjoy!

It's that time of year again when the WAPF holds their annual Wise Traditions Conference!!

The health and nutrition conference is coming to Indianapolis this year on November 7-9, 2014. “Focus on Food” is the weekend’s theme and the event offers good news for those who are ready to turn away from low-fat and other fad diets and return to the wholesome and nutritious foods of our ancestors.

AND they have a sweet registration deal happening right now where you get access to 7 years worth of conference footage once you register! This only happens if you register before November 4th though. See this thread for more details!

A few fun memes and images from Western A Price.

WAP rocks, turned me on to bone broths and I just recently got Sally Fallons book Nurishing Traditions. This is the best book on food and food prep I have ever read. Makes my belly happy!

I've spent a lot of time looking at what the WAPF teaches/preaches as well as what Paleo/Primal teaches. There are many similarities (bone broth, the love of butter...) and there are a few disagreements (grains). It is one of those situations where I wish they would focus on their agreements and not separate on their disagreements.

Both camps have their dogmatism but I think WAPF is more entrenched and less flexible on their dogma (Fermented Cod Liver Oil and High Vitamin Butter Oil being their most dogmatic doctrines) than the Paleo/Primal folks are. I prefer the flexibility of Paleo/Primal perhaps for no better reason that I tried the FCLO and HVBO and as God is my witness they both made me ill! I'll get my vitamin A and D in other forms, thanks!

Where they all agree:

1. Processed foods are killing us.
2. Animal fat and coconut oil are good for us.
3. vegetable oils are bad.
4. Soy - bad.
5. GMOs - bad
6. EAT REAL FOOD
7. Eat fermented food.
8. BONE BROTH ROCKS -- drink lots of it!
9. Animal protein (pastured) is good for us (some disagreement in how much).

Did I forget anything???

Grateful for the work of the wapf, raising healthy kids on a wapf philosophy. It aint easy but it's worth it.

Palm oil isn't very permie though is it?

I like WAP, except for some dogma (esp on breatfeeding...). I am successfully healing my multi-allergic son, using their tecniques - even with being dogmatik about it. I think the Real Food movement is into something really important. The disagreement BTW paleo and WAP people on grain... IDK - from a permaculture perspective we should all eat less ground regardles, so maybe start there and agree that if we do eat it, it should be sprittes and/or fermented? That what I'm doing at least.

@ Tina Paxton
I took a similar route and drew similar conclusions. There's a lot of overlap indeed. That serious researchers coming at it from different angles draw the same conclusions has to count for something. At least as far as I can tell. But what about the China Study? The conclusions are the opposite. I still feel like I'm scratching the surface here and can't really get my head around it. I must admit I'm in some sort of nutritional identity crisis now because of it. A true omnivore's dilemma, as Pollan beautifully described it in his book. The industrial stuff is quite clear. It's agreed upon almost across the whole spectrum we should steer clear of it. The big question mark that remains for me is about starch. That we have started overemphasizing it in our diets is a view I can quite easily see the logic of. But no starch at all? We do make amylase. And a one size fits all diet?
Our guts are like soil; we know hardly anything about it, but we completely depend on it. There are a lot of absolute statements out there about it. I feel it's way too early for that. Food and digestion are only one part of the puzzle imho and in itself extremely complex. A title that drew my attention lately is "Diet Cults: The Surprising Fallacy at the Core of Nutrition Fads and a Guide to Healthy Eating for the Rest of Us". I tells me I'm not the only one noticing a certain nutri-religiousity. At the moment I have most sympathy for WAP, but it's more based on a hunch than on anything else. I can't become the expert I have to be, in order to make real sense of it all. Anyway, people getting out of the grips of agro-industry and marketeers is a development I highly enjoy. It resonates with a lot of stuff many permies hold dear to their hearts.

Bauluo Ye wrote:@ Tina Paxton
But what about the China Study? The conclusions are the opposite.

A title that drew my attention lately is "Diet Cults: The Surprising Fallacy at the Core of Nutrition Fads and a Guide to Healthy Eating for the Rest of Us". I tells me I'm not the only one noticing a certain nutri-religiousity. At the moment I have most sympathy for WAP, but it's more based on a hunch than on anything else. I can't become the expert I have to be, in order to make real sense of it all. Anyway, people getting out of the grips of agro-industry and marketeers is a development I highly enjoy. It resonates with a lot of stuff many permies hold dear to their hearts.

Have you read "The China Study"? I got through about half of it. I read it while eating a 100% raw vegan diet. I tried the "less than 10% protein" idea and it caused me medical problems that had my MD begging me to eat more protein. The major problem with the basis of The China Study is he is basing his theories on epidemiological studies looking at multiple countries which sounds like it would balance out any "confounding factors". But, alas, it does not. There are just way too many confounding factors and adding in more countries just adds more confounding factors. Add to that the fact that there are many other studies that conflict with Dr. Campbell's theories.

Nutri-religiousity is a good way to explain it. There are diet gurus out there for an amazing range of diet theories. And, the followers are devout and intense. Some of the more extreme diet theories are good places for people with disordered eating to hide behind "eating healthy". Being a person who has battled disordered eating for 42 years, I recognize the signs in others when I see it. And, I worry about myself and my own tendencies.

In one of Pollan's books, he gives 3 simple rules for eating which if we could follow them, would greatly simply what has become a very difficult area of our lives. His rules are:

1. Eat real food.
2. Not so much of it.
3. Mostly plants.

Add to that the WAPF's rule on eating fermented foods at each meal...

And, Paleo's cautions against grains (especially if you have inflammatory or autoimmune issues)...

And, you could end up with a dietary plan without the fanaticism of the guru followers...

I agree Tina, and would add to your list - if eating meat (muscle) add organ meats, bone broths and/or good sourced gelatin for amino acid balance.
It's covered in WPF, but sometimes hard to add enough of. Now days we just don't eat the whole animal, and we don't get a lot of fermented foods - two good points to remember.

Jami McBride wrote:I agree Tina, and would add to your list - if eating meat (muscle) add organ meats, bone broths and/or good sourced gelatin for amino acid balance.
It's covered in WPF, but sometimes hard to add enough of. Now days we just don't eat the whole animal, and we don't get a lot of fermented foods - two good points to remember.

Yes! Thanks for adding that! Definitely need to eat more organ meats than muscle meats.

Thanks for your reply Tina Paxton. I haven't read The China Study, but it and Campbell keep showing up on my radar. He comes across as an honest and serious researcher, even drawing conclusions that went completely against his own beliefs. He's also human, so he could be wrong. But the study is based on data collected in China (+Taiwan in part 2) only. It's far from a trivial study. In fact it's regarded as the most comprehensive study of diet, lifestyle and disease ever conducted. I just haven't seen it tackled yet and I'd like to see a debate between this side and the "carnivore" side as a matter of a personal fact finding mission. I'll pick it up here: http://www.davidicke.com/forum/showpost.php?s=12996133217301e82190c161b13c35cc&p=1061045274&postcount=4

I'm also putting bits and pieces together from various sources and try to come up with something that seems right for me. Rule 1+2 are a no-brainer. Rule 3 is more tricky because it pretty much rules out paleo/keto/WPF (or are you talking about volume?). I'm also adding the fermented foods and making my first bone broth as we speak. My caution towards grains/gluten is very fresh, but I'm looking into it. And yes Jami McBride, Sally Fallon gave me the last push to finally start learning eating organ meat (especially liver). I haven't figured out where to get a non-toxic one and I'm not looking forward to the taste ether.

What I regard as healthy is to try to avoid cherry picking and confirmation bias. One way is to take a serious and honest look at what the critics have to say. Not the nay sayers, but the ones that have simply come to opposing conclusions. It should be part of science, but unfortunately they too are only human.

If you don't mind me asking, how's your health Tina? My ex suffered from anorexia so I know a little about how devastating eating disorders can be. And they are so damn hard to treat! If you come from a situation like that, I highly congratulate you for being so undogmatic! The main reason I bother looking into this food-stuff is that I keep reading it is a serious factor in what we've started calling mental health. It's a labyrinth, but I can't afford to ignore it. No health, no nothing.

Bauluo Ye wrote:Thanks for your reply Tina Paxton. I haven't read The China Study, but it and Campbell keep showing up on my radar. He comes across as an honest and serious researcher, even drawing conclusions that went completely against his own beliefs. He's also human, so he could be wrong. But the study is based on data collected in China (+Taiwan in part 2) only. It's far from a trivial study. In fact it's regarded as the most comprehensive study of diet, lifestyle and disease ever conducted. I just haven't seen it tackled yet and I'd like to see a debate between this side and the "carnivore" side as a matter of a personal fact finding mission. I'll pick it up here: http://www.davidicke.com/forum/showpost.php?s=12996133217301e82190c161b13c35cc&p=1061045274&postcount=4

Well, actually, it draws from other epidemiological studies as well, but mostly the Asian region of the world. Scientifically, epidemiological studies are not considered something to draw conclusions from. They are meant to be a starting place -- a view of areas to study further. Campbell goes against that standard view and uses the epi studies as grounds for conclusions. His work is the "bible" for those who use it as a springboard for gurus wanting to claim scientific evidence for their nutritional doctrines. Whether Campbell is sincere or not -- they all *seem* sincere, the fact is his work is not viewed positively by the scientific community. A google search will give you plenty of reading of the whys of the rejection of his doctrines.

Bauluo Ye wrote:I'm also putting bits and pieces together from various sources and try to come up with something that seems right for me. Rule 1+2 are a no-brainer. Rule 3 is more tricky because it pretty much rules out paleo/keto/WPF (or are you talking about volume?). I'm also adding the fermented foods and making my first bone broth as we speak. My caution towards grains/gluten is very fresh, but I'm looking into it. And yes Jami McBride, Sally Fallon gave me the last push to finally start learning eating organ meat (especially liver). I haven't figured out where to get a non-toxic one and I'm not looking forward to the taste ether.

Yes, by volume plants should be the larger part of your daily intake. People tend to think that Paleo/Primal is all meat and no plants. That is not true.

For liver -- try rabbit liver! It is the liver-haters liver. It is also good to eat ruminant livers but can be more challenging taste wise. I still haven't been able to bring myself to eat calf liver. I know I should but I so hate the taste. I have hear of people cutting it into small pieces, freezing it, and swallowing the frozen pieces. OR, you can make a "meatloaf/meatball" using 2 parts muscle meat and 1 part calf liver - they say that covers up the taste. Not sure.

Bauluo Ye wrote:What I regard as healthy is to try to avoid cherry picking and confirmation bias. One way is to take a serious and honest look at what the critics have to say. Not the nay sayers, but the ones that have simply come to opposing conclusions. It should be part of science, but unfortunately they too are only human.

If you don't mind me asking, how's your health Tina? My ex suffered from anorexia so I know a little about how devastating eating disorders can be. And they are so damn hard to treat! If you come from a situation like that, I highly congratulate you for being so undogmatic! The main reason I bother looking into this food-stuff is that I keep reading it is a serious factor in what we've started calling mental health. It's a labyrinth, but I can't afford to ignore it. No health, no nothing.

I don't mind. My health is not great. I have several autoimmune conditions (which respond well to "no grains"). I have found it impossible to control my weight which baffles all logic and I'm getting quite desperate about it. And, to be honest, I am not as "undogmatic" as I sound. I still have disordered thinking about food. I am either 100% ON TARGET and DOGMATIC about the chosen plan or I am 100% OFF TARGET. There is NO such thing as "all things in moderation" or "one little cheat" for me. I got a masters in nutrition in hopes I'd find the answers to my issues and all would be well. But, knowledge does not necessarily translate to psychological change. Last year, I reached out for the first time for medical assistance. I worked with a naturopath for most of the year but the only improvements came from the paleo diet, not from the supplements and such recommended. And, the biggest issue I wanted help with -- my weight (I'm 300lbs) -- didn't get effective help. I sank once again into depression and discouragement about it and the disordered eating rose again.... sigh.... I'm fighting against the urge to just say f*it and eat myself to death and I'm again reaching out for help -- this time from my D.O. I've only seen him a couple times but I feel hopeful so this week I have an appointment with him to ask for help. If I don't get some help, I'm not sure what I will do. ...sorry that may be TMI but I don't want anything thinking I think I have all the answers.

As a scientific area of study, nutrition is in it's infancy. There are many more questions and theories than there are answers. And, no matter how scientific something seems...it may not pan out in personal experience. Ultimately, each person must do a N=1 study to see what works for you.

The rabbit liver is new to me, thanks for the tip. Another thing I was thinking of regarding the taste of liver comes from a BBC documentary from a couple of years back. It was in part about kids not liking the bitter taste of vegetables. One conclusion was it matters a lot how many times these tastes are offered to them. Learning to eat something is possible and this is an important part of it. So I intend to treat myself as a kid when it comes to liver, and just take as long as I need to get acquainted with it. I'll start with a very small amount and fiddle around with frequency, volume and ways of preparation. It's a fun challenge. One that has been in the back of my mind for a long time. Apart from an occasional try, I haven't had the courage or felt the necessity to go for it. Sally Fallon is an excuse-eliminating-machine when it comes to this.

It's a horrible battle you're in. It's just so damn complicated matter and so damn many people claim to have the only true path to health. The more you've tried, the harder it gets to keep going. Although my own battle is in the so called "mental" department, I recognize a lot of what you write. I think reaching out is wise and I wish you keep doing that until you hit bulls eye. The upside of despair is that it sometimes helps to take steps that seemed impossible or too difficult without it. Nature is brilliant. Mercilessly, but brilliant. I find it a consoling thought that even the most horrible feelings are an attempt of our system to heal. Jonathan Rottenberg really drove that point home for me with "The Depths: The Evolutionary Origins of the Depression Epidemic". Off topic, sorry, but relevant here, I think. What's also hopeful to me is the zeitgeist. An ever growing crowd is not taking the marketeer crap anymore and demands answers. Challenging the old food pyramid has almost become main stream, at least in The Netherlands. It could lead to a paradigm shift and a different allocation of research funds. At least WAPF and others are looking in unconventional directions already. Who knows what it'll yield.

One question I have about WAPF is why "round" faces and dental health are markers for overall health. Isn't this the bias of a dentist? To me the difference between generations isn't always so obvious as it is to Sally Fallon. I also wonder what happens when you go further back in time, before domestication of ruminants, before milk. Weren't people healthy before this point in time?

Bauluo Ye wrote:One question I have about WAPF is why "round" faces and dental health are markers for overall health. Isn't this the bias of a dentist? To me the difference between generations isn't always so obvious as it is to Sally Fallon. I also wonder what happens when you go further back in time, before domestication of ruminants, before milk. Weren't people healthy before this point in time?

I wondered the same thing. Then, I watched a youtube video talking about the research that Price did and how the change in face shape comes about and affects dental health and from there overall health. It is actually amazing at the link between dental health and overall health and that is not just dentist bias, that is medical science. It is why doctors take mouth infections very seriously.

Historically, even Europeans had rounder faces than now. If you look at pictures from the 1800s and early 1900s you will see how faces were rounded as were bodies.

Not Sure about the round faces idea as old photographs are usually of rich folks who had a better diet , or more fat in their diet anyway .

David

Price researched people groups in various areas of the world where they were still eating a "native" diet. While the diets varied based on local foods available, there were common denominators: fermented foods, animal fats, and organ meats (except for one group that were largely vegetarian). He proposed that one key factor present in all the diets was a "Factor X" which later came to recognized as vitamin K2.

And, it was actually the rich who were less health than than the "poor" who were eating their native diet. European wealthy class ate white flour while the poor were eating whole grains (often fermented).

Anyway, rather than try to write a dissertation on Price's research, here is a presentation from Sally Fallon explaining the research:

I did WAPF for a while (not *real* WAPF with bone broth, K2, and the like, but I soaked my grain and beans til they smelled gross - but were still food -) but did not feel well until I found Ray Peat. Are there Peat-ers on this forum? I keep a log of my health and a lot of things have changed for the good while on Peat: back pain, neck and head pain, joints, energy, mood. I used to ferment like half of my food, I do mean half, but it did not do much but make me gain weight due to the protein that comes with it.

Dawn Hoff wrote:Palm oil isn't very permie though is it?...

@Dawn - I'm curious: why do you ask this? From a nutritional perspective, palm oil is a good one, and a traditional one (in tropical regions, at least). It is a tree crop. Why shouldn't it be very "permie"?

I know that these days a lot of land is being cleared to make way for a lot of non-sustainable, monocrop, palm oil plantations. But what else is new? Which agricultural products can you name that aren't being mis-produced by industrial ag somewhere out there? Doesn't mean that the same product can't be produced sustainably somewhere else as part of a healthy polyculture.

Very interested to learn if these are your misgivings, or if you know something else about palm oil that is new to me...?

BTW, here is a little guide to nutritional oils I picked up a while ago and have been living by ever since. I would love to hear people's feedback, counterpoints to this info, or if anyone knows from where this chart comes (I lost track of its source, and would love to rediscover who published it!):



full size pic on freeimage.us

P.S. I don't understand: why can't I get permies.com to actually display anything but the thumbnail image?

Emm Hemma wrote:I did WAPF for a while (not *real* WAPF with bone broth, K2, and the like, but I soaked my grain and beans til they smelled gross - but were still food -) but did not feel well until I found Ray Peat. Are there Peat-ers on this forum? I keep a log of my health and a lot of things have changed for the good while on Peat: back pain, neck and head pain, joints, energy, mood. I used to ferment like half of my food, I do mean half, but it did not do much but make me gain weight due to the protein that comes with it.

Yes, Peat-er off-grid homesteading family here in New Zealand.   We tend to follow most of what Ray recommends except that my wife does better on full fat milk and in general eats more saturated fat than he recommends.   She finds her teeth start hurting if she goes low-fat for too long.

Hi Warren,

Welcome to Permies.

You are absolutely right - I didn't think of that back then, just jumped on the "Palm-Oil bad" waggon

Matthew Nistico wrote:

Dawn Hoff wrote:Palm oil isn't very permie though is it?...

@Dawn - I'm curious: why do you ask this?  From a nutritional perspective, palm oil is a good one, and a traditional one (in tropical regions, at least).  It is a tree crop.  Why shouldn't it be very "permie"?

I know that these days a lot of land is being cleared to make way for a lot of non-sustainable, monocrop, palm oil plantations.  But what else is new?  Which agricultural products can you name that aren't being mis-produced by industrial ag somewhere out there?  Doesn't mean that the same product can't be produced sustainably somewhere else as part of a healthy polyculture.

Very interested to learn if these are your misgivings, or if you know something else about palm oil that is new to me...?

BTW, here is a little guide to nutritional oils I picked up a while ago and have been living by ever since.  I would love to hear people's feedback, counterpoints to this info, or if anyone knows from where this chart comes (I lost track of its source, and would love to rediscover who published it!):

full size pic on freeimage.us

P.S.  I don't understand: why can't I get permies.com to actually display anything but the thumbnail image?