My modus operandi has traditionally been to eat just enough healthy stuff to convince myself that the all the bad stuff isn't really a big deal. As long as I snuck a salad into a day, all other gastronomical sins were forgiven, or so I'd convince myself in the way that's only possible when you don't actually think about something. So it's pretty safe to say that when I really do think about nutrition and my eating habits, the result will almost certainly be healthier.
However, whenever I try to get healthier, it amazes me how everything seems to be bad for you. For example, as part of my new vegan lifestyle, I've started to consume more soy products. It didn't take long to be informed that soy can actually be bad for you, potentially causing thyroid problems. Other soy consumers I talked to didn't think this was a significant risk, and I feel pretty safe in assuming that, unless I start mainlining soy like heroine, I probably won't have a problem.
But this underlines a fundamental problem: How does the average person figure out what is healthy when it feels like nothing is healthy? With so many conflicting opinions, who can we trust to give us the straight dope on the food we consume? I'm going with a common sense approach (pound of bacon, bad; organic leafy greens, good), but it is one of the factors that leads to thinking, Whatever the hell I'm going to eat is going to kill me, so why not enjoy it? Not a logical approach, but as already established, I'm able to make decisions about my nutrition (and many other things) without actually thinking.
So instead of stressing about it, I'm just going assume that when I think about what I'm going to eat, it's going to be better than when I don't, proven by the numerous 4000 calorie Chili's meals in my past.
P.S. That link is for just the appetizer.
It might blow your mind to know too much spinach (more than once a week) is thought be bad, too. SPINACH! It leeches calcium. Kale is a trustworthy green.
ReplyDeleteBut don't fret about what's bad. That's when you end up like the people I met when we were up in Maine. The guy at the health food store was saying how not only does he refuse to use electricity, but he won't live within a square mile of someone who DOES have electricity because of the radiowaves or something. I'm all about au natural farm life, but let's be rational. NO ELECTRICITY IN MAINE??? That can't be safe.
What?! No, seriously, WHAT??? I eat baby spinach at LEAST twice a day! Information like this makes me want to give up and eatwhatever whenever. It seems to me like scientific minds of some distant tomorrow will view the whipash that is nutrition science of the 21st century with roughly the same awesome disbelief we regard the snakeoil salesman of the 19th...oy!
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