Food is the devil. Or
so I used to think, at least. But now I
think society and the media are the real culprits, not food. I have gotten very irritated in the last
several months with everything I’ve read and listened to regarding diets and
the “right” way to eat. Well, I have
been trying to figure out the “right” way to eat for many years now.
When I was in the 8th grade I got it in my head
that I was overweight. I wasn’t at all,
but many of the girls in my school were late bloomers and really petite so
compared to them I felt like a giant even though I was healthy. Back then I remember the fad diets I would
read about in my teen magazines and I swore off eating all fat, because fat was
the cause of getting fat, right? I would
check the label on everything and if there was even 1 gram of fat in it, I
wouldn’t let it pass my lips. Of course,
I was stupid and naïve and didn’t realize that good fat is crucial for the body
to develop properly and to absorb nutrients.
I didn’t even take into account calories, sugar, proteins, carbs, chemicals
or anything else on the label. No fat
meant I could eat it. No fat meant
“healthy.”
When I got into high school I continued to stress out over my
weight and body image. I decided I
wouldn’t restrict fat from my diet anymore, but I wouldn’t eat over a certain
amount of calories per day. My view of
food and dieting just got more and more destructive. Then I remember one day my friend showed me a
sheet of paper that basically outlined the Atkins diet. Eat all the meat you want, just no
carbs. Oh, so the real villain is
carbs! Okay, I will stay away from carbs
then. Little did I know that good carbohydrates
are what the brain uses for fuel.
So I tried this, that, and the other, eventually giving up on
diets for a while during college. I probably ate better then than at any other
time because I didn't obsess about food or make unreasonable food restrictions. I walked to classes every day and
signed up for aerobics. I was active and
maintained a healthy weight. While at college I took several food and nutrition
classes and a couple of
semesters into school I also took a chemistry class and loved it. For one of the assignments we had to complete an experiment on the pH scale. Part of the assignment included licking a pH strip to find out how acidic our saliva was. Mine just happened to be much more acidic than the other students in my class. The teacher suggested that everyone's oral flora (or otherwise) is different to varying degrees. I've always found that interesting and this idea might have been the catalyst of my thought that everyone's body needs different requirements to perform at their best. The combined food and chemistry courses led me to believe that I could control my pH levels by eating particular foods. Assuming this was true, I researched alkaline foods in an attempt to neutralize my body pH. I loved the concept of food and the body working
together to make a chemical reaction. It
was then that I decided I wanted to go into food science and become a dietian. But my school didn’t offer a program and
then I moved out of the country for work and so I put it off. Now I’m glad I never went into
dietetics. If I had, I would’ve been
stuck with a degree I wouldn’t even want to use because I’d have to follow
government guidelines and standards and I don’t necessarily agree with
those.
Let me explain. I’ve
come to the conclusion that there isn’t a “one diet fits all” out there. I’ve felt this way for a while, realizing
that everybody is unique chemically and physically and people have differing
medical conditions. So the same diet for
everyone just doesn’t make sense.
I chose dietetics as a potential career field because I wanted to help
people with eating disorders or other medical problems like diabetes. I wanted to create the perfect meal plans tailored specifically to fit the individual needs of these people. It just seemed sensible that way. And all this time I still haven’t figured out
what meal plan works for me. I am 40+
pounds heavier than I was when I got married 9 years ago. I’ve had 3 kids and that’s definitely changed
my body and the older I get the slower my metabolism becomes. I’ve also been diagnosed with hypothyroidism,
which can make it difficult to lose weight.
I’ve struggled with depression and have recently come to realize I am an
emotional eater. All these factors have
attributed to my weight gain over the last 10 years or so. Now I realize that weight shouldn’t define
health or wellness. But, at this moment I feel the most physically
unhealthy that I’ve ever been and I really want to change that. So, what do I need to do to be healthy? There is SO much information out there, it
completely overwhelms me. I have found
books and movies for just about every kind of diet or lifestyle. And they all claim to be the best way or the
most correct way. There are studies done
for just about everything that “prove” a specific viewpoint. I’ve read plenty of books about the “ideal”
diet. I’ve even practiced these things
in hopes of becoming healthier. Because
of The China Study, my husband and I decided
to cut back our animal protein. So we
were eating more soy based products.
Then we learned about the harm the soy industry causes the environment
and family farms and how too much soy can negatively affect the body. Then we went on a raw diet where all our food
was uncooked. We drank an excessive
amount of green smoothies and organic produce. Then I tried Weight Watchers. I
tried the Acai berry diet. I tried the apple cider vinegar diet. I tried the
Paleo diet. I feel like I’ve tried it
all.
The information out there is always changing. Whenever I’m waiting in the check-out line in
the grocery store there is a new diet being promoted on the cover of Woman’s World or some new miracle super
food that slows aging or speeds up metabolism.
It’s just difficult to determine what things are legitimate. Mostly I believe companies are just out to
make money. They tell us we NEED these
things. Just look at all the stuff out
there. South Beach Diet, HCG diet, Nutra
slim, Herbalife, Ideal Protein, Shakeology, Slim fast, Weight Watchers, Jenny
Craig, Nutrisystem, and who knows what else.
They all claim to be the best method or best formula. They’ll tell anybody anything to get their
money, right? Just a company trying to
sell me their books, videos, their man-made, unnatural, chemically loaded shake powders and
individually portioned food that costs several hundred dollars a month. There’s always going to be some diet or
workout program out there to lure those poor, fat, unhappy people into paying
for it because they’re convinced it will change their life. But to me, they’re all just a scam. I don’t know what to believe anymore. There are contradictions in everything I
read. Here are some examples: Canola oil is heart healthy! Canola oil is potentially dangerous! Eggs increase
cholesterol and contribute to heart disease!
Eggs are great for you! Margarine
is a healthy substitute for butter! No,
butter is better after all! Whole grains
are best! Grains cause leaky gut
syndrome! Eliminating animal products is
the way to go! Chicken and fish are a
good source of protein! Sugar makes you
gain weight, use aspartame instead!
Aspartame causes cancer! Milk does
a body good! It’s full of vitamins and
nutrients including calcium which is good for you bones! Cow’s milk is full of hormones and
antibiotics, the casein causes acne, and it’s basically bereft of any
nutritional value! You need vitamin supplements! Vitamin supplements are not needed if you
are eating the right diet! And on and on
it goes. If there’s a book out there
that promotes a vegan lifestyle there’s also a book out there that whole
heartedly encourages eating lots of meat and animal products. From one extreme to the next, it's insane the amount of information you can get your hands on.
A few months ago I wrote on a piece of paper “GOAL: GET
HEALTHY!” and put it on my bulletin board to remind me that I need to be
improving my health every day. I decided
to find a way to jumpstart my thyroid so that I might be able to get off my
hormone medication. I researched various
ways to do this. One of the things I
read that supposedly helps is to avoid raw cabbage, broccoli, kale, Brussels
sprouts & other cruciferous vegetables.
Now, this totally contradicts the raw diet lifestyle I had previously
been on board with, which claims that all your needs will be met if you just
eat a bajillion raw fruits and vegetables everyday. I also read an article in a magazine that
listed the best foods for losing weight, and beans and high-fiber cereal made
the list. But if you talk to any person
who practices a Paleo diet, they’ll tell you to absolutely avoid those
things. If I follow the Paleo diet I
should be eating a variety of meats, vegetables, fruits and good fats including
those found in olives, avocados and coconuts.
But according to the book Eat Right
for your Blood Type, I “should avoid bacon, ham, some types of fish, dairy
foods, nuts, grain foods, coffee and herbal teas. Specific items that [I]
should not eat include, avocados, corn, eggplant, mushrooms, olives, melon,
oranges, blackberries, coconuts, strawberries and tangerines.” Well there’s a lot of stuff listed here that
is strongly encouraged by the Paleo people.
The blood type book also mentions that I should eat a lot of vegetables,
especially kale, spinach, and broccoli based on my type O blood type. Mmmmkay, but the thyroid research said to
avoid at least 2 of those foods. It’s
maddening, isn’t it? Well, who’s right?
Last October, I attempted to do Whole30 which is basically
following a strict Paleolithic diet for a month. This meant no grains, legumes, dairy
products, salt, refined sugar, processed food and oils for 30 days. It was difficult, and I’ll admit I slipped up
a few times because of social events and my son’s birthday. Do I think it made me feel better? I don’t know for sure. I lost a few pounds, mostly because I was
laying off the junk food I had become accustomed to. But I didn’t see a change in my depression or
fatigue or overall health. I did become
more obsessed with what I ate, however. I
was constantly figuring out what I was going to make for meals, wondering how I
was going to convert my family to the diet, and stressing over all the
restrictions I was forced with all of a sudden.
I also struggled with how the Paleo ideology fit in with my religious
beliefs. As Latter-day Saints, we are
encouraged to use the Word of Wisdom as a guide to a healthy lifestyle. We stay away from drugs, tobacco, alcohol,
coffee, and tea. We believe in moderation in all things. But it also states : “Yea, flesh also of beasts and of
the fowls of the air, I, the Lord, have ordained for the use of man with
thanksgiving; nevertheless they are to be used sparingly; And
it is pleasing unto me that they should not be used, only in
times of winter, or of cold, or famine. All grain is
ordained for the use of man and of beasts, to be the staff of life… …All grain
is good for the food of man; as
also the fruit of the
vine; that which yieldeth fruit, whether in the ground or above the ground-“
So I definitely grappled to reconcile these two ideas, the Paleo
diet and the Word of Wisdom. On one
hand, one diet was telling me to eat more meat and no grains while the other
told me that “grains are the staff of life” and to “eat meat sparingly.” So again, more frustration followed. I just thought to myself, if I decide to eat
a Paleo diet from here on out, what could I use as food storage? Canned fruits and vegetables, maybe jerky,
and what else? No rice, oats, beans, or
even quinoa. Right now I have over 400
pounds of wheat and a wheat grinder as part of my emergency food storage. If I was forced to, how difficult would it be
for my body to adjust to eating whole wheat again after not consuming it for several months or years? Anyway, after 30 days
of trying to eat Paleo I gave up and decided eliminating an entire food group
from my diet wasn’t the way to go.
But then again, many people have
issues with gluten and grains lately.
There has to be something to that, right? There are people I know personally who say
gluten causes horrible reactions to them or their children. I also have a friend whose son is severely
sensitive to red dye 40, and when consumed causes outbursts of rage and uncontrollable
fits. Another friend of mine swears that
certain foods increase symptoms in her autistic brother. I started thinking about it more and
more. Some people aren't affected at all by gluten or dyes. Perhaps this just further confirms my belief that not everybody should or can eat the exact same diet. Or maybe food really is the
devil! I talked to a close friend about
why people are more prone to food sensitivities these days. She said she thinks it has to do with the way
all our food is produced now. It’s not
easy to find stuff that hasn’t been mass produced and adulterated with
pesticides and genetically modified. Not
to mention, all the artificial colors and flavors and preservatives added to
everything. Funny how even processed foods like mini muffins laden with
sugar and quick breads and cakes are considered grains by many people. This same friend brought up that a friend of
hers dealt with a gluten intolerance until his wife started using sprouted
wheat to make her baked goods, and then it didn’t have the same negative affect
on him. Maybe the food in our grocery
stores nowadays are so polluted with crap that our bodies have a hard time
functioning properly. Whether it’s true
or not, I don’t know, but I would be interested to learn more about it.
I think the last straw for me happened when I turned on the TV
one afternoon. I rarely watch TV, but
this particular day I was sick and was just lounging around. On came Dr. Oz speaking to his audience of
mostly women who soak up everything he says like little sponges. The segment I happened to catch was called
“Eat for your Metabolism.” And there
were 3 tables with different foods on them.
Depending on if you are type A, B, or C, your ideal diet consisted of
certain foods. It kind of seemed modeled
after the “Eat Right for Your Blood Type” diet.
I got really angry after watching that show. How many of the people watching are going to
follow this idea because it’s endorsed by Dr. Oz? How correct is this idea? What is the idea founded on? Are there actual studies on this? I just find it ridiculous that people get
sucked into the latest trend without any consideration for whether there is an
actual basis for its argument. There is
one point I think Dr. Oz got correctly.
There isn’t just one diet for everyone.
But I think it goes deeper than your metabolism type, an eating
disorder, or disease like diabetes.
Maybe everybody’s individual body chemistry is so distinct that the only
way to figure out the perfect diet is to experiment. This thought totally reminded me of the pH level assignment in chemistry class and now this idea of mine has come full circle after years of several failed food regimens.
So, this is the conclusion I have come to. I am thinking of doing a juice cleanse or fast
to detoxify. Then slowly add back one
food at a time and see how my body reacts to it. It sounds like a hassle and it will probably
be a long process, but I don’t really know what else to do at this point. How else am I going to know the specific needs
of my body? I think this test will eliminate
mindless eating and indulging too. I
guess some will say that this tactic is going to make me obsess over food just
as much as (if not more than) the next diet.
But I think once I figure out my triggers and really pay attention to my
body, I can get back to normal eating relatively soon, avoiding foods that
cause undesirable outcomes. Along with this I need to gain a greater love and
appreciation for my body, however it looks and not get drawn into the hype of
the latest and greatest product or diet.
I believe in eliminating processed foods and sugar, avoiding foods
covered in pesticides, foods containing lots of additives and preservatives,
and genetically modified food. I want to
be good to my body and to the earth. I
believe in these things. The world
we live in today makes it extremely difficult to follow your beliefs 100% of
the time. But I have to take control of my life at some point, and right now I suppose this means starting with what I put into my body. So I have to try to be better, no matter what the viewpoints of the world.
