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Will You Let it Eat You Alive?
wizzybeth
Posts: 3,578 Member
in Debate Club
Lots of threads spring up here about "toxins" in food. And they always go down a similar path. Always.
I have spent that last 15+ (give or take) years being on-again, off-again the "Food Fear" bandwagon. It led me to get rid of my microwave, to throw out hundreds of dollars of "processed chemical junk food" from my pantry, force my family to eat lesser tasting, more expensive, organic foods, spend almost $1000 on both a juicer and a bread machine so I could make my own concoctions and my own bread and we'd be oh so happy and healthy. I was going to basically exist on green smoothies and home made bread, and dammit my family was going to come along for the ride and LIKE it.
SIDE NOTE: Nobody in the family but me will drink the juices, and now I bake bread about 2x a year. (No I didn't need a bread machine, but because of the way I cook and bake, it seemed the smartest choice.) I haven't used the juicer in several months, possibly years, and only on occasion make a smoothie with my Ninja, which I also bought thanks to FOOD FEAR.
Eventually my budget would not allow me to continue down the 100% organic path, plus I was devastated to learn that organic on the label doesn't mean it's really, truly, 100% organic because nobody really checks up on it - we are at the mercy of the integrity of the company putting out the food.
I bought all kinds of books about backyard & container gardening, and envisioned how I was going to be a regular Earth Mama, and grow our own salads (regardless of the fact that our growing season here in my corner of the world is somewhat short. Not as short as say, Alaska, but not like SoCal or down South).
I was fraught with anxiety and stress over all the food fear crap. Yes, the BPA in canned food. Led me to get rid of almost all of my plastic containers and buy mason jars for food storage. Well that works for some things but not others. Sigh. Now I have a cupboard full of mason jars, which are not always convenient.
Food from China! Don't get me started - we have more to "worry about" there than just the dang cinnamon. They (chinese manufacturers) had shipped cough medicine to Central America that contained a commercial form of silicone rather than food quality silicone - it was essentially anti-freeze. Yup. Try finding food sources you can trust.
Monsanto! I swear I caused half of my FB friends to unfollow me because of my sharing links about how Monsanto is ruining our world. I still believe they are, but I honestly don't know what we can do about it.
This stuff will EAT YOU ALIVE if you let it. Fact is - we're all going to die. Cancer is like a lottery - you just never know if you're going to be picked to get it. A woman I know lived a very "healthy" and super strict lifestyle for years and years and YEARS - from starting sometime in the 70s, banning sugar from her home, never consuming alcohol, eating only "whole" and "healthy" foods - exercised daily, etc. She was not overweight, and she looked the absolute picture of health. Guess what? Cancer got her before she turned 55. She didn't just GET cancer, she DIED from it. And I suspect she refused traditional chemo treatments - not sure - but she seemed like the type to go against the grain of the "medical community" and their "plots" to "poison" people with their drugs. I do know she regularly visited an herbalist.
And she's still dead. Before her grandson's first birthday.
AGAIN...this stuff will eat you alive - you can obsess over it - and still die.
Or you can just accept that we live in an imperfect world and we're all gonna die anyway. Thousands of years ago it was pestilence and predators that were our enemies.
Our average life expectancy is more than it was 40 years ago. Something seems to be OK.
I have spent that last 15+ (give or take) years being on-again, off-again the "Food Fear" bandwagon. It led me to get rid of my microwave, to throw out hundreds of dollars of "processed chemical junk food" from my pantry, force my family to eat lesser tasting, more expensive, organic foods, spend almost $1000 on both a juicer and a bread machine so I could make my own concoctions and my own bread and we'd be oh so happy and healthy. I was going to basically exist on green smoothies and home made bread, and dammit my family was going to come along for the ride and LIKE it.
SIDE NOTE: Nobody in the family but me will drink the juices, and now I bake bread about 2x a year. (No I didn't need a bread machine, but because of the way I cook and bake, it seemed the smartest choice.) I haven't used the juicer in several months, possibly years, and only on occasion make a smoothie with my Ninja, which I also bought thanks to FOOD FEAR.
Eventually my budget would not allow me to continue down the 100% organic path, plus I was devastated to learn that organic on the label doesn't mean it's really, truly, 100% organic because nobody really checks up on it - we are at the mercy of the integrity of the company putting out the food.
I bought all kinds of books about backyard & container gardening, and envisioned how I was going to be a regular Earth Mama, and grow our own salads (regardless of the fact that our growing season here in my corner of the world is somewhat short. Not as short as say, Alaska, but not like SoCal or down South).
I was fraught with anxiety and stress over all the food fear crap. Yes, the BPA in canned food. Led me to get rid of almost all of my plastic containers and buy mason jars for food storage. Well that works for some things but not others. Sigh. Now I have a cupboard full of mason jars, which are not always convenient.
Food from China! Don't get me started - we have more to "worry about" there than just the dang cinnamon. They (chinese manufacturers) had shipped cough medicine to Central America that contained a commercial form of silicone rather than food quality silicone - it was essentially anti-freeze. Yup. Try finding food sources you can trust.
Monsanto! I swear I caused half of my FB friends to unfollow me because of my sharing links about how Monsanto is ruining our world. I still believe they are, but I honestly don't know what we can do about it.
This stuff will EAT YOU ALIVE if you let it. Fact is - we're all going to die. Cancer is like a lottery - you just never know if you're going to be picked to get it. A woman I know lived a very "healthy" and super strict lifestyle for years and years and YEARS - from starting sometime in the 70s, banning sugar from her home, never consuming alcohol, eating only "whole" and "healthy" foods - exercised daily, etc. She was not overweight, and she looked the absolute picture of health. Guess what? Cancer got her before she turned 55. She didn't just GET cancer, she DIED from it. And I suspect she refused traditional chemo treatments - not sure - but she seemed like the type to go against the grain of the "medical community" and their "plots" to "poison" people with their drugs. I do know she regularly visited an herbalist.
And she's still dead. Before her grandson's first birthday.
AGAIN...this stuff will eat you alive - you can obsess over it - and still die.
Or you can just accept that we live in an imperfect world and we're all gonna die anyway. Thousands of years ago it was pestilence and predators that were our enemies.
Our average life expectancy is more than it was 40 years ago. Something seems to be OK.
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Replies
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Oh man, i've started down the rabbit hole too! LOL some things I just try not to think about, i buy from local farmers markets but hey, who knows what they did to my tomatoes!!! And I agree, cancer just roll the dice....2
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I first thought this was about the guy who tried to be eaten alive by an anaconda.5
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I first thought this was about the guy who tried to be eaten alive by an anaconda.
Oh my God. Thanks for the heebie jeebies!! lol0 -
This is on a plaque in my kitchen: Eat, Exercise, Die Anyways.15
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Very well stated, OP. Great perspective from someone who has been there.
The question shouldn't be "How do we live as long as possible?" or "How do I be as healthy as possible?"
It should be "How do I live a good life?"17 -
Journey before destination.5
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Bravo, OP. Bravo.4
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Nicely done, OP.
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I first thought this was about the guy who tried to be eaten alive by an anaconda.
Thanks a bunch. Now I've got "My anaconda don't" stuck in my head.
Which is better than having my head stuck in an anaconda.
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I really enjoyed this...........sounds vaguely familiar............LOL
Yes, I think we can try to optimize our health a little through exercise and good nutrition but going to miserable extremes just doesn't make that much sense to me anymore.
I will say though that the one thing that seems to have improved my life and comfort level more than anything having to do with food and or diet, is exercise. At 66 I really do feel younger than I have in years and I have to attribute it to exercise, and secondary, to weight loss. Nothing extreme though just mindful eating and lots of enjoyable exercise!
Will I still die..............yep, and if I knew when I probably wouldn't like that very much!5 -
You op are awesome! I wish more people would wake up and see the truth. Eat a well balanced wide variety diet and do your best, there is no need for the anti sugar anti carb fear mongering and it shows how feeble minded people really are. I'm glad you've saw the light OP!3
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zoeysasha37 wrote: »You op are awesome! I wish more people would wake up and see the truth. Eat a well balanced wide variety diet and do your best, there is no need for the anti sugar anti carb fear mongering and it shows how feeble minded people really are. I'm glad you've saw the light OP!
nice way to deliver a backhanded put down to anyone who might actually feel better eating in a way other than you deem appropriate
but go on with your superior self.12 -
There are "dangers" everywhere and we can choose to make ourselves miserable worrying about them or choose to live our lives to the best of our abilities and roll with the punches.
I spent 10 years eating a vegan, macrobiotic, diet when I was in my 20's. Was it awesome..........sure, and it was very healthy. Could I sustain it once I was married and had 3 kids..............nope!
Pick your battles!4 -
zoeysasha37 wrote: »You op are awesome! I wish more people would wake up and see the truth. Eat a well balanced wide variety diet and do your best, there is no need for the anti sugar anti carb fear mongering and it shows how feeble minded people really are. I'm glad you've saw the light OP!
I wouldn't sweepingly call people feeble minded - just influenced one way or the other. If you want to be anti this or that for yourself, have at it...but I have a problem when people become radical, aggressive evangelists about it, lol7 -
I don't stress about food much beyond taste and cost. My mom, aunt and uncle died of cancer. Two received proper treatment for it but died anyway and one found out about the cancer and was dead the next week. People who ate the same are still around. You can do the right things and still get cancer and die.
Don't label somebody a deluded nut by their diet/lifestyle though. People may have different reasons for their choices.
I can't make my own bread regularly because it gets eaten way too fast. Loaf of bread from the store isn't expensive and lasts a week at least. Love my bread machine though.
No microwave for years because the last two broke. Food tastes weird from the microwave anyway. Don't need it or want it anymore.
I don't grow much food because I am lazy. I grow tomatoes because fresh picked tomatoes are amazing. Canned tomatoes are the only canned vegetables I buy though.
I don't buy much organic food because it is more expensive. I appreciate that people are trying to use no pesticides and more environmentally friendly agriculture practices. I'd like to support that finacially but I can't. I don't think labeling a food organic, free range, grass fed is magically going to fix you if you eat it.
I eat less beef because it is expensive. I eat beans and lentils because they are cheap.
I grew up eating margarine because butter would kill us. I eat regular butter now because it tastes better and doesn't make things soggy. I'm going to die anyway. I might as well eat what I Iike.
I avoid artifiacial sweeteners because I get migraines when I consume them. Real sugar doesn't cause me problems.
I cook a lot because the food I make tastes better and costs less.
Don't stress about it too much.
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I don't stress about food much beyond taste and cost. My mom, aunt and uncle died of cancer. Two received proper treatment for it but died anyway and one found out about the cancer and was dead the next week. People who ate the same are still around. You can do the right things and still get cancer and die.
Don't label somebody a deluded nut by their diet/lifestyle though. People may have different reasons for their choices.
I can't make my own bread regularly because it gets eaten way too fast. Loaf of bread from the store isn't expensive and lasts a week at least. Love my bread machine though.
No microwave for years because the last two broke. Food tastes weird from the microwave anyway. Don't need it or want it anymore.
I don't grow much food because I am lazy. I grow tomatoes because fresh picked tomatoes are amazing. Canned tomatoes are the only canned vegetables I buy though.
I don't buy much organic food because it is more expensive. I appreciate that people are trying to use no pesticides and more environmentally friendly agriculture practices. I'd like to support that finacially but I can't. I don't think labeling a food organic, free range, grass fed is magically going to fix you if you eat it.
I eat less beef because it is expensive. I eat beans and lentils because they are cheap.
I grew up eating margarine because butter would kill us. I eat regular butter now because it tastes better and doesn't make things soggy. I'm going to die anyway. I might as well eat what I Iike.
I avoid artifiacial sweeteners because I get migraines when I consume them. Real sugar doesn't cause me problems.
I cook a lot because the food I make tastes better and costs less.
Don't stress about it too much.
Well, genetics always win over lifestyle, in the end.2 -
I do worry about a lot of the things in the OP. Not to the point of obsession and certainly not to the point of juicing (don't really understand how juicing would solve anything TBH).
We self-source (grow, raise, fish, hunt) a good percentage of our food. Because I can somewhat control a decent percentage of our food I try not to worry too much about the food we buy. I say "too much" because I'd be lying if I said I didn't worry at all.
I try to source my food as best I can for the same reason I exercise. I believe it gives me the best shot possible in these areas for health. But food and exercise aren't the be all end all for health. They are just pieces of the puzzle. Stress is just as important a piece so I don't allow myself to stress over food.1 -
You can do the right things and still get cancer and die.
That's why I don't wear a seat-belt anymore.
Just kidding. I'd rather die of cancer when I'm 110 years old than something else at 45. I don't know what the future holds, but I do know that risks add up and I prefer not to take them when it's easy enough to avoid them instead. Now I've never been to the point that some people in here are describing, I have no problem buying non-organic raspberries.3 -
My main thing was - it's not worth obsessing over IMHO because you just never know. I frankly don't want to live past 100 unless I am not fragile, and am able to have a robust life without fear of breaking a hip or living with chronic arthritis pain. That is why I am working on taking care of myself, but it's not an obsession...if that makes sense. It WAS an obsession with me previously.
I have no idea of my actual genetic history. Both my biological grandmother and my biological mother died at very young ages due to tragic accidents. My grandfather was arthritic and crippled by the time he was in his 70s, but no idea if that was because he was depressed, sitting in a chair all day after getting out of bed in the morning, overweight, smoking cigars and drinking too much, or simply genetic. My bio father also died in an accident. I didn't know my grandparents on his side. So it's a total crap shoot for me.
I want to enjoy my life NOW, every day, to the fullest I can. And that means - taking it one day at a time, being better today than I was yesterday, worrying about tomorrow very little. Tomorrow is promised to no one. So, enjoy today.
I understand wanting to grow your own food because you like how it tastes. I wish I could, but realistically, I know my limitations - but previously I felt the only way I could BE SAFE and ENJOY LIFE was if I became an Earth Mama and shunned every possible thing that Monsanto has its ugly claws in....but that's not realistic FOR ME. And it was making me crazy and somewhat depressed.3 -
Parenthetical addition: The reference in my OP re: my dad's father is about my adopted dad's father - I was adopted when I was a toddler0
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I believe that stress via trying to overdo being healthy, is what caused that woman; to develop cancer. I always say that "Too much and/or too little, of anything/everything positive; is ALWAYS negative"!0
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I lived in S. Korea for a couple years. I had this realization that they were getting things imported from China, leaving eggs outside of the fridge, and mixing food with their hands (in restaurants) and everyone remained alive. The elderly were hella healthier than most American elderly individuals. I never got food poisoning/travel tummy either. (Well I did get food poisoning when I drank bad soy milk from my own fridge. I just wasn't sure what bad soy milk smelled like before then.)
Long story short, there are a lot of wellness "best practices" to take if one is so inclined, but there isn't any one right answer for best health and even then there is a large range of good health which can be achieved.
I am anti-carb for myself, because eating this amount of protein preserves muscle and eating high fat keeps me full and happy. It's not for everyone, but it's easier for me than eating the same amount of calories in other foods.6 -
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zoeysasha37 wrote: »You op are awesome! I wish more people would wake up and see the truth. Eat a well balanced wide variety diet and do your best, there is no need for the anti sugar anti carb fear mongering and it shows how feeble minded people really are. I'm glad you've saw the light OP!
I wouldn't sweepingly call people feeble minded - just influenced one way or the other. If you want to be anti this or that for yourself, have at it...but I have a problem when people become radical, aggressive evangelists about it, lol
What makes someone a radical, aggressive evangelist? I don't necessarily disagree with your OP that people need to not let things consume them when it comes to diet, but I think it's wrong to limit that idea to things like toxins, organic, juicing, etc, or the notion that it's the people who follow those paths that are the radical, aggressive evangelists. I would think anyone who is pushing their personal views on food on others or insisting that their point of the view is the only correct one, especially when the other person is saying "thanks, but no thanks," would be considered an aggressive evangelist. "Radical" seems to be more of a subjective term based on one's personal beliefs about what the person is suggesting, and what might seem extreme to one person is perfectly plausible and sustainable to another.
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zoeysasha37 wrote: »You op are awesome! I wish more people would wake up and see the truth. Eat a well balanced wide variety diet and do your best, there is no need for the anti sugar anti carb fear mongering and it shows how feeble minded people really are. I'm glad you've saw the light OP!
I wouldn't sweepingly call people feeble minded - just influenced one way or the other. If you want to be anti this or that for yourself, have at it...but I have a problem when people become radical, aggressive evangelists about it, lol
What makes someone a radical, aggressive evangelist? I don't necessarily disagree with your OP that people need to not let things consume them when it comes to diet, but I think it's wrong to limit that idea to things like toxins, organic, juicing, etc, or the notion that it's the people who follow those paths that are the radical, aggressive evangelists. I would think anyone who is pushing their personal views on food on others or insisting that their point of the view is the only correct one, especially when the other person is saying "thanks, but no thanks," would be considered an aggressive evangelist. "Radical" seems to be more of a subjective term based on one's personal beliefs about what the person is suggesting, and what might seem extreme to one person is perfectly plausible and sustainable to another.
If it's all but consuming you - then it's radical. I guess if you do what I did - constantly try to educate everyone around you to the point of annoying folks - I'd call that being a bit radical.2 -
zoeysasha37 wrote: »You op are awesome! I wish more people would wake up and see the truth. Eat a well balanced wide variety diet and do your best, there is no need for the anti sugar anti carb fear mongering and it shows how feeble minded people really are. I'm glad you've saw the light OP!
I wouldn't sweepingly call people feeble minded - just influenced one way or the other. If you want to be anti this or that for yourself, have at it...but I have a problem when people become radical, aggressive evangelists about it, lol
What makes someone a radical, aggressive evangelist? I don't necessarily disagree with your OP that people need to not let things consume them when it comes to diet, but I think it's wrong to limit that idea to things like toxins, organic, juicing, etc, or the notion that it's the people who follow those paths that are the radical, aggressive evangelists. I would think anyone who is pushing their personal views on food on others or insisting that their point of the view is the only correct one, especially when the other person is saying "thanks, but no thanks," would be considered an aggressive evangelist. "Radical" seems to be more of a subjective term based on one's personal beliefs about what the person is suggesting, and what might seem extreme to one person is perfectly plausible and sustainable to another.
I would say that when someone continues to bring up the subject or create opportunities to say "don't eat it! It'll kill you!! Toxins!! Remove all sugar from your diet!!" and continues to boldly proclaim these things as though they're true and eliminating what they did is necessary for health and/or weight loss despite all the voices saying that it isn't necessary and providing them with credible sources of information which demonstrate the error in their claims, that person is acting as a radical evangelist for their cause.
In contrast, being ready and willing to counter the false claims of the misinformed would not be radical. It would be responsive.
There's a difference between creating opportunities to spread one's beliefs and being ready to counter misinformation for the sake of those who may read/hear the claims made and think that such drastic measures as eliminating an entire food group is necessary for weight loss and good health.
I've also never seen a thread where the OP implores the masses to start eating sugar and/or processed foods.
Granted, I have seen lots of people (myself included) say that moderation is all that's necessary and that there's no need to go to extremes or elimination diets. However, these statements are always in response to some claim that everyone must eliminate [insert demonized food here] in order to not get fat and/or die.13 -
Carlos_421 wrote: »zoeysasha37 wrote: »You op are awesome! I wish more people would wake up and see the truth. Eat a well balanced wide variety diet and do your best, there is no need for the anti sugar anti carb fear mongering and it shows how feeble minded people really are. I'm glad you've saw the light OP!
I wouldn't sweepingly call people feeble minded - just influenced one way or the other. If you want to be anti this or that for yourself, have at it...but I have a problem when people become radical, aggressive evangelists about it, lol
What makes someone a radical, aggressive evangelist? I don't necessarily disagree with your OP that people need to not let things consume them when it comes to diet, but I think it's wrong to limit that idea to things like toxins, organic, juicing, etc, or the notion that it's the people who follow those paths that are the radical, aggressive evangelists. I would think anyone who is pushing their personal views on food on others or insisting that their point of the view is the only correct one, especially when the other person is saying "thanks, but no thanks," would be considered an aggressive evangelist. "Radical" seems to be more of a subjective term based on one's personal beliefs about what the person is suggesting, and what might seem extreme to one person is perfectly plausible and sustainable to another.
I would say that when someone continues to bring up the subject or create opportunities to say "don't eat it! It'll kill you!! Toxins!! Remove all sugar from your diet!!" and continues to boldly proclaim these things as though they're true and eliminating what they did is necessary for health and/or weight loss despite all the voices saying that it isn't necessary and providing them with credible sources of information which demonstrate the error in their claims, that person is acting as a radical evangelist for their cause.
In contrast, being ready and willing to counter the false claims of the misinformed would not be radical. It would be responsive.
There's a difference between creating opportunities to spread one's beliefs and being ready to counter misinformation for the sake of those who may read/hear the claims made and think that such drastic measures as eliminating an entire food group is necessary for weight loss and good health.
I've also never seen a thread where the OP implores the masses to start eating sugar and/or processed foods.
Granted, I have seen lots of people (myself included) say that moderation is all that's necessary and that there's no need to go to extremes or elimination diets. However, these statements are always in response to some claim that everyone must eliminate [insert demonized food here] in order to not get fat and/or die.
I agree with those, that demonize; sugar free gummi bears!0 -
This conversation rocks.1
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