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What are your unpopular opinions about health / fitness?
Replies
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My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.28
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How Artificial Sweeteners Affect Gut Bacteria #care2 http://www.care2.com/greenliving/how-artificial-sweeteners-affect-gut-bacteria.htmlclicketykeys wrote: »yes to I did mean when I hear a calorie is a calorie & doesn't matter what you eat, I think it does. But want to add that I was thinking If I'd known about calorie deficit years ago I would have started then. I tried so many things (didn't work) but never heard of calorie deficit. I wonder how many other ppl don't know about it?
Who have you heard saying that it doesn't matter what you eat?
New unpopular opinion: Artificial sweeteners rock!
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TeacupsAndToning wrote: »
How Artificial Sweeteners Affect Gut Bacteria #care2 http://www.care2.com/greenliving/how-artificial-sweeteners-affect-gut-bacteria.html21 -
scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
Can be healthier, isn't necessarily. I've been vegetarian for 25 years. During that time, I've had periods of being exceedingly healthy, and periods of being exceedingly unhealthy. I've had periods of being normal weight, and periods of being overweight. Being vegetarian or vegan isn't going to protect you from cancer or Alzheimer's (or a broken hip), and actually that is a flat out stupid, and nasty, thing to say.scottiehexter wrote: »TeacupsAndToning wrote: »
How Artificial Sweeteners Affect Gut Bacteria #care2 http://www.care2.com/greenliving/how-artificial-sweeteners-affect-gut-bacteria.html
*sigh* no. http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1308408/why-aspartame-isnt-scary/p1
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Nony_Mouse wrote: »scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
Can be healthier, isn't necessarily. I've been vegetarian for 25 years. During that time, I've had periods of being exceedingly healthy, and periods of being exceedingly unhealthy. I've had periods of being normal weight, and periods of being overweight. Being vegetarian or vegan isn't going to protect you from cancer or Alzheimer's (or a broken hip), and actually that is a flat out stupid, and nasty, thing to say.scottiehexter wrote: »TeacupsAndToning wrote: »
How Artificial Sweeteners Affect Gut Bacteria #care2 http://www.care2.com/greenliving/how-artificial-sweeteners-affect-gut-bacteria.html
*sigh* no. http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1308408/why-aspartame-isnt-scary/p1
Maybe you weren't vegetarianing hard enough to transcend humanity.27 -
scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
Healthier as opposed to what? It's all relative. If you have a poor diet, then any diet that includes nutrient dense foods will be healthier...5 -
scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
Heh.
Signed,
Woman who went from healthy weight to obese and back while vegetarian for 43 years, and got stage III breast cancer in year 26 (age 44); whose meat-eating obese mother lived to 81 (breast cancer) and meat-eating non-obese active father to 87 (heart condition)23 -
scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
Sigh... as I post this response, I am spending the weekend with my 78 year old father at his 60 year high school reunion. Why is that significant you ask? Because out of the 82 people that he graduated with, 2/3 of them are here at the reunion and while a few are walking with canes they are ALL walking on their own and just as sharp mentally as us youngsters... and they all grew up eating meat, whole milk, heavy cream, butter and no small amount of veggies grown in their own gardens. Meats and fats are not demons and are nit trying to 'kill us in our sleep'.20 -
scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
Wow, I'm 66, near my goal weight, lift weights 3x per week, do cardio 4x per week and just got my bloodwork results yesterday for my annual physical. My cardio risk is well below average. Ratio of Chol/ to HDLCHOL is 3.3. The target is less than 5. My bloodwork shows, in my doctor's words, zero signs of inflamation. I get my age guessed at 50 regularly. I eat meat 4 to 5 times per week at dinner (fish 2 to 3x per week) and eat bacon for breakfast 3x per week.
I must be doing it wrong.
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Motorsheen wrote: »loftus4827 wrote: »Kettle bells are retarded. There I said it
I dunno, I've got one that makes a pretty awesome doorstop.
It's heavy enough to keep the service door open and it has that handle thing so I don't have to bend all the way over to move it out of the way. It's a keeper!
Old-timey iron irons for ironing clothes do it better.1 -
While I'm not in support of GMO's, I don't see how that has anything to do with maintaining a healthy weight.scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
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scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
Did both your parents own umbrellas too?
BTW - any disease with a genetic component you really should be concerned and vigilant about.13 -
scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
I am unaware of any studies showing a connection between veganism and reduced Alzheimer's risk and the studies I have seen actually support higher fracture risk for vegans (which we can possibly moderate with appropriate calcium/D intake).6 -
scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
I was a 210 pound vegetarian. It's quite easy to be an obese vegetarian. And I was a whole foods vegetarian. Junk food never passed my lips.
My Nan was mainly a vegetarian in her later years, and she died... of a broken hip.
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scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
Here's a few vegan foods:
Oreos
Nutter Butter cookies
Cracker Jacks
Doritos
Kool Aid
Swedish Fish
Sour Patch Kids
Red Bull energy drink
Fritos
Pop Tarts
Pringles
So if I construct my diet exclusively of the above foods, it will be easier to maintain a healthy weight than eating a balanced diet which includes lean meats, fish and eggs along with whole grains, fruits and vegetables? And I'll be disease free and live longer and not have broken hips and Alzheimers?
Magical.16 -
scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
Here's a few vegan foods:
Oreos
Nutter Butter cookies
Cracker Jacks
Doritos
Kool Aid
Swedish Fish
Sour Patch Kids
Red Bull energy drink
Fritos
Pop Tarts
Pringles
So if I construct my diet exclusively of the above foods, it will be easier to maintain a healthy weight than eating a balanced diet which includes lean meats, fish and eggs along with whole grains, fruits and vegetables? And I'll be disease free and live longer and not have broken hips and Alzheimers?
Magical.
Wait, what? I thought Swedish Fish contained gelatin?!!?
Signed,
Missing the point entirely 9 -
scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
Here's a few vegan foods:
Oreos
Nutter Butter cookies
Cracker Jacks
Doritos
Kool Aid
Swedish Fish
Sour Patch Kids
Red Bull energy drink
Fritos
Pop Tarts
Pringles
So if I construct my diet exclusively of the above foods, it will be easier to maintain a healthy weight than eating a balanced diet which includes lean meats, fish and eggs along with whole grains, fruits and vegetables? And I'll be disease free and live longer and not have broken hips and Alzheimers?
Magical.
Wait, what? I thought Swedish Fish contained gelatin?!!?
Signed,
Missing the point entirely
You haz the vegetarian Alzheimers.
It's a thing.7 -
...unless you're good on your coconut oil. They say it stops that.4
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My mother-in-law has the healthiest plant based diet of anyone I have ever met. Nutrition is her hobby, and even though I think she probably meets the dictionary definition of orthorexia, her diet is insanely meticulous and healthy. She's never even been close to the overweight side of the BMI, walks 10,000+ steps a day, drinks half her body weight in water a day (I know that's not recommended, but you try telling her that). Crazy organized lady.
I don't agree with her on diet and nutrition (I think meat and sugar are part of a healthy diet too), but I don't deny that she's found a way of eating that is healthy for her.
She developed bladder cancer three years ago.
She's fine now, and it probably won't come back, but you can't control some things by diet. We were all teasing her about how she's the healthiest person we know, but she's the one to get cancer.3 -
Cancer is a roll of the dice. Sure there are things you can do environmentally to increase your chances of getting cancer but the basal rate isn't zero. No matter what you do there is a chance that you will get cancer because cancer isn't some disease that you catch, its a chance with every cell division that your cells will layer enough specific mutations into their genomes to go rogue and start dividing without regulation.
Things that are carcinogens either damage cells in a way that they have to be repaired or they need to be replaced (increasing the number of times the cells divide thus increasing the chances of error) or they are things that cause DNA damage or mutation (such as UV radiation or certain mutagens (thus increasing the chance that one of your cells will get those mutations).
There is a reason why most cancer happens in tissues that are constantly replicating to replenish themselves and there is a reason why chemotherapy selectively targets those tissues (things like intestinal lining, hair follicles etc) leading to nausea and hair loss.
Is it possible that certain diets increase your chances of specific types of cancer? Yeah its possible, but there isn't any concrete epidemiological studies that demonstrate that. And either way the chance will never be zero. No matter what your diet is, you can still get cancer.
As for breaking your hip because you eat meat that is just a weird thing to claim. Clearly the cause of a mother breaking bones is related to what cracks their children step on. Its actually a commonly held misconception that stepping on cracks only will break your mother's back, other bones are also at risk.39 -
Aaron_K123 wrote: »Cancer is a roll of the dice. Sure there are things you can do environmentally to increase your chances of getting cancer but the basal rate isn't zero. No matter what you do there is a chance that you will get cancer because cancer isn't some disease that you catch, its a chance with every cell division that your cells will layer enough specific mutations into their genomes to go rogue and start dividing without regulation.
Things that are carcinogens either damage cells in a way that they have to be repaired or they need to be replaced (increasing the number of times the cells divide thus increasing the chances of error) or they are things that cause DNA damage or mutation (such as UV radiation or certain mutagens (thus increasing the chance that one of your cells will get those mutations).
There is a reason why most cancer happens in tissues that are constantly replicating to replenish themselves and there is a reason why chemotherapy selectively targets those tissues (things like intestinal lining, hair follicles etc) leading to nausea and hair loss.
Is it possible that certain diets increase your chances of specific types of cancer? Yeah its possible, but there isn't any concrete epidemiological studies that demonstrate that. And either way the chance will never be zero. No matter what your diet is, you can still get cancer.
As for breaking your hip because you eat meat that is just a weird thing to claim. Clearly the cause of a mother breaking bones is related to what cracks their children step on. Its actually a commonly held misconception that stepping on cracks only will break your mother's back, other bones are also at risk.
Omg it's Aaron!2 -
Hi @Aaron_K123 nice to see you back. h2
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Aaron_K123 wrote: »As for breaking your hip because you eat meat that is just a weird thing to claim. Clearly the cause of a mother breaking bones is related to what cracks their children step on. Its actually a commonly held misconception that stepping on cracks only will break your mother's back, other bones are also at risk.
I have missed you so much.
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I am not sold organic food is worth the cost.8
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scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
Here's a few vegan foods:
Oreos
Nutter Butter cookies
Cracker Jacks
Doritos
Kool Aid
Swedish Fish
Sour Patch Kids
Red Bull energy drink
Fritos
Pop Tarts
Pringles
So if I construct my diet exclusively of the above foods, it will be easier to maintain a healthy weight than eating a balanced diet which includes lean meats, fish and eggs along with whole grains, fruits and vegetables? And I'll be disease free and live longer and not have broken hips and Alzheimers?
Magical.
Nutter Butters are my go-to road trip food (although I don't expect to live longer because of it).4 -
scottiehexter wrote: »My unpopular idea is that going vegetarian or vegan can be healthier for you, the animal kingdom, and the planet. I don't worry about getting the diseases that my parents had, since my lifestyle is entirely different. Neither of them were overweight, but my dad died of pancreatic cancer and my mom from Alzheimer's and a broken hip -- they both consumed animal products. I think it is easier to maintain a healthy weight by avoiding animal products and GMOs.
Here's a few vegan foods:
Oreos
Nutter Butter cookies
Cracker Jacks
Doritos
Kool Aid
Swedish Fish
Sour Patch Kids
Red Bull energy drink
Fritos
Pop Tarts
Pringles
So if I construct my diet exclusively of the above foods, it will be easier to maintain a healthy weight than eating a balanced diet which includes lean meats, fish and eggs along with whole grains, fruits and vegetables? And I'll be disease free and live longer and not have broken hips and Alzheimers?
Magical.
Wait, what? I thought Swedish Fish contained gelatin?!!?
Signed,
Missing the point entirely
No gelatin!
(But they're still weirdly high in calories -- 150 for just *seven fish*!).4 -
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I'm feeling very opinionated lately - here's another one. In my opinion, if you don't count calories and believe that counting is obsessive or a moral failure, belittling people on a calorie counting forum for, well, counting, is trolling.29
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I'm feeling very opinionated lately - here's another one. In my opinion, if you don't count calories and believe that counting is obsessive or a moral failure, belittling people on a calorie counting forum for, well, counting, is trolling.
How about someone who says that calorie counting is too inexact a science, and then goes on to say that IF is better (ya know, 'cause thats MORE exact). I mean, I like IF for me (with calorie counting), but seriously?
(referring to bizarre 'CICO, still skeptical' thread)15 -
annaskiski wrote: »I'm feeling very opinionated lately - here's another one. In my opinion, if you don't count calories and believe that counting is obsessive or a moral failure, belittling people on a calorie counting forum for, well, counting, is trolling.
How about someone who says that calorie counting is too inexact a science, and then goes on to say that IF is better (ya know, 'cause thats MORE exact). I mean, I like IF for me (with calorie counting), but seriously?
(referring to bizarre 'CICO, still skeptical' thread)
Well, I was thinking more along the lines of "Really, if you can't learn to listen to your body and intuitively eat just the amount of food you need to maintain there's something wrong with your relationship with food." types of comments in terms of trolling.
But, you're right, those comments annoy the hell out of me because ANY way of managing energy balance is inexact and relies on trial and error, so why post on a calorie counting site that because the CICO calculations can't be spot on the method isn't valid? Especially because it's usually in defense of some type of restrictive eating plan that that works for THEM, but wouldn't suit most people.6
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