Eating well
Posted April 10, 2006 at 1:28 pm
Over on the Weight of the Evidence, Regina dings the AHA for taking the position that lowering trans fats in the diet is an acceptable position (compared to eliminating them). I just love what she writes at the end, and note that this applies to more than the issue of trans fats:
By refusing to support industry that is detrimental to our health we can send a message to the puppets we have sitting in many of the leading health organizations: health does not come out of a can, a bottle, or any other man made disposable. Health does not come from chemistry. Health comes from the soil - from real whole foods that served us well for millenia that too many today wouldn’t even recognize if itwere on their plate.
We have all heard the saying, “Think globally, Act locally.” Well, your own body is as local as you can get. Everything you consume is a personal statement of how you view your body and health.
This is a personal challenge to any and all of my friends and readers who see the irony of the AHA encouraging donuts, fast food bacon biscuits and other assorted junk food - Let’s all take a stand for ourselves, our health and say “enough is enough.” Put down the soda, the chips, and donuts and declare your body a toxin-free zone.
More importantly, I’d encourage people to put down the soda, the chips, and donuts and begin taking in real nutrients. I saw Martina Navratilova on Martha Stewart today, and she has a new book out called Shape Your Self, and she made the point that this really has less to do with what you weigh and is much more about how you feel, about the amount of energy you have.
Go figure! Sounds like a book I need to read!
Here’s what CBS had to say after an appearance on The Early Show (emphasis mine):
Navratilova admitted that when she first retired, she let herself slip — but quickly regretted the lapse. “I didn’t put on much weight, maybe five to 10 pounds,” she said. “But I got really sluggish, and I was too tired to do the sports that I love doing. And I thought, this is really silly. So I started getting back in shape so I could do everything that I wanted to do.”
Fatigue is one of the complaints Navratilova says she hears most from other people and it’s a condition she says is worth fighting. “It’s really about having the energy of doing your everyday things. And most people, you know, don’t have enough. They just keep saying, ‘I’m tired. I’m tired.’ You should be tired of being tired.”
The tennis star says the most important thing is to think carefully about the kinds of foods you eat. “You cannot feel energetic when you’re eating lousy food.”
Personally, I think a large part of my compulsive overeating was physiological, rather than psychological. I’ve long thought this was due to the negative effects of eating too many refined carbs and too much sugar. Now I’m wondering whether it was just a response to malnutrition! Despite eating thousands of calories a day, maybe I was just starving myself of needed nutrients.
Now that I’ve had such an easy recovery from last Thursday’s embolization, I’m wondering how much of that may be due to the healthy state I was in. Who knows? But what I’m finding is that increasing nutrients has been very, very good for me. And when you feel this good, old, less nutritious foods just don’t have the same draw.
April 10th, 2006 at 2:14 pm
Beth, there’s a discussion on Salon.com of Michael Pollan’s new book The Omnivore’s Dilemma, and an interview with the author that you might find interesting (you can read Salon for free if you watch their little advert).
April 10th, 2006 at 2:26 pm
I agree with you — I think it IS malnutrition — I was eating a 300 calorie bowl of microwavable soup or a lean cuisine every day for lunch, and got the advice that there are no nutrients in those things — i switched to a similar calorie’d green salad with a bit of protein (usu chicken or turkey or cheese) and I am not getting the 3 o’clock munchies. A bag of lettuce and pre prepped bags of carrots and other veggies and the salad takes about 5 minutes to dump everything in a big tupperware for the week, and take out a bowlful every day for work.
April 10th, 2006 at 3:14 pm
I know the only time I craved chips, cookies, and the like was when I ate compulsively or binged. When I am physically hungry and think about what I really want to eat, I want food — real food. Meat and fruit and salads and bread and nourishing stuff — not junk. I haven’t binged in 4 1/2 weeks and have hardly thought about the Doritoes, Pop Tarts, and fudge-striped cookies in the cupboard. They just hold no allure for me unless I’m eating for emotional reasons.
April 10th, 2006 at 3:57 pm
Thanks little miss ess! That is indeed an interesting article. This link should work for others so inclined, or you can find it under the “Books” link on Salon’s main nav. Here’s the book on Amazon for those who’d like to pre-order the book (it comes out this weekend).
April 10th, 2006 at 4:46 pm
Someone or other says that “Americans are overfed and undernourished” and I think that’s dead on. And don’t forget about the water - I’ve learned from painful experience that fatigue is FREQUENTLY caused by dehydration. And those processed foods are salty as hell…
Oh another thing I was thinking: was it you who wrote about Camille’s Cafe a while ago? Can’t remember. I have to tell you, after seeing their nutritional information, I was a bit shocked. I mean, I like the restaurant, the food is tasty, but I wasn’t happy with the calories and fat grams. I don’t mean to demonize the place; whether their food fits into one’s diet is highly individual, but for me I feel like I get a much better deal at Subway. You can get a 6 inch turkey or chicken sub for HALF the calories of a Camille’s sandwich and a quarter the fat (I’m not trying to do a commercial, just sharing my findings). For that matter, a Double with cheese at Wendy’s is similar nutritionally to most of the sandwiches at Camille’s. I just felt kind of BETRAYED when I saw that; it’s such a happy pretty place, you expect the food to be as healthy as it appears. Oh well, as I have learned over and over and over: you have to read the label!
April 10th, 2006 at 5:03 pm
Yeah, that was me. And I know what you mean. I think there are healthy choices at Camille’s, but they sure do have a lot of stuff on the menu that is meant to appeal to the burger crowd (like most of the hot sandwiches).
You sure are right: it pays to read the label!
April 11th, 2006 at 10:17 am
Hi, Beth - your comment about possible malnutrition reminded me of a similar sentiment expressed in Fit for Life, by Harvey and Marilyn Diamond. You probably know of them and their idea of food combining. They are also, if memory serves, vegetarian. They state that the average American has intestines that are totally clogged by meat; they describe it in a very detailed way, that the intestines are lined with villi that are like millions of little fingers that stick out of the walls of the intestines, that grab nutrients out of digested food as it passes through. But, they say, the average American diet clogs the walls of the intestines and thus, quite literally clogs the villi and prevents them from even being able to absorb the nutrients from the food passing through. Not only this, but the Diamonds argue that the excessive amount of sugar/HFCS crystallizes on top of this clogged up junk, which makes it even more difficult for the villi to act properly, and makes it even more difficult to clean out the villi-clogging junk!
This may or may not be bunk. What they are arguing for is, at bottom, consumption of a LOT more fruit and veg (though they say fruit should only be eaten on an empty stomach). And when you follow their plan you certainly WILL notice activity that seems a lot like it could be all-natural intestinal cleansing! And doing their plan, I did feel like my normally slow healing processes sped up, which would evidence getting better nutrition out of my food (may just have been placebo effect or my imagination, who knows).
I am also reminded of “slurry” foods that WLS patients are told to avoid; what does slurry do in the intestines?
I think there really may be something to this malnutrition angle - that this explains a lot of the very real hunger people feel, because their bodies simply are not getting nutrition either from or out of their food.