Controversial stance, maybe?

aj_rock

I hear the word 'natural' thrown around a lot. Somewhere down the line, a lot of people have confused 'good for you' with 'natural'.

When you really think about what that word means, humanity itself is unnatural. So why this fixation on clean eating, no drinking milk, eat paleo, blah blah blah?

First off, saying that our bodies are meant to eat one thing versus another because that's how primal man did it is silly. Should I also find potential mates by hitting them with a club and dragging their unconscious bodies back to my cave? Historical precedant really should not influence our eating, unless history literally says 'if you eat this, you will immediately and violently become sick'.

When people ate these natural things, they also expected to not live far beyond the age of 30. we didn't fix this by just 'eating better'. We did it by being really SMART and using SCIENCE to lengthen our lifespan. We use pesticides and stuff like that FOR GOOD REASONS. Assuming that every big company has it out for your life makes no sense. They can't make money if their product killed people; it's in their best interest to feed you food that WON'T kill you.

It just seems silly to see a lot of sensationlist crepe gets bandied about simply because the people pushing their 'eat clean' diets use specific words and fears to try and sway the average person.

*end rant mode*

Let the conflicting opinions begin!

VeganGal84

This made me laugh. No opinion to add, but thanks for making me LOL this dreary afternoon. :laugh:

Heatherbelle_87

Im pretty sure this has made me fall in love with you. lol Thank you for having the balls to say it!

SiltyPigeon

I you. No, really.

Luvlee85

"Should I also find potential mates by hitting them with a club and dragging their unconscious bodies back to my cave?"...

Some people may say yes to that one. I liked this post!!!

anna_lisa

I think it depends on what you are reading and researching and who is doing the research. That is all I will say........

Atlantique

I hear the word 'natural' thrown around a lot. Somewhere down the line, a lot of people have confused 'good for you' with 'natural'.

When you really think about what that word means, humanity itself is unnatural. So why this fixation on clean eating, no drinking milk, eat paleo, blah blah blah?

First off, saying that our bodies are meant to eat one thing versus another because that's how primal man did it is silly. Should I also find potential mates by hitting them with a club and dragging their unconscious bodies back to my cave? Historical precedant really should not influence our eating, unless history literally says 'if you eat this, you will immediately and violently become sick'.

When people ate these natural things, they also expected to not live far beyond the age of 30. we didn't fix this by just 'eating better'. We did it by being really SMART and using SCIENCE to lengthen our lifespan. We use pesticides and stuff like that FOR GOOD REASONS. Assuming that every big company has it out for your life makes no sense. They can't make money if their product killed people; it's in their best interest to feed you food that WON'T kill you.

It just seems silly to see a lot of sensationlist crepe gets bandied about simply because the people pushing their 'eat clean' diets use specific words and fears to try and sway the average person.

*end rant mode*

Let the conflicting opinions begin!

I agree with you to a point insofar as natural does not always equal better. But some of your analogies are way off. LOL

dipsl19

Assuming that every big company has it out for your life makes no sense. They can't make money if their product killed people; it's in their best interest to feed you food that WON'T kill you.

... cigarette companies? hello??!
i mean there's just so much i can say in response to this. pesticides are used so that there is more product to be sold, period. because it makes more MONEY.

.... everything is about money. companies dont care about their customers. lets get real here..

obviously everything is relative, and no you wont DIE from eating a bag of cheetos once a week, but if you eat them all day every day it WILL negatively affect your health.

luckily its not my job or concern to convince anyone, so carry on lol

AlsDonkBoxSquat

I hear the word 'natural' thrown around a lot. Somewhere down the line, a lot of people have confused 'good for you' with 'natural'.

When you really think about what that word means, humanity itself is unnatural. So why this fixation on clean eating, no drinking milk, eat paleo, blah blah blah?

First off, saying that our bodies are meant to eat one thing versus another because that's how primal man did it is silly. Should I also find potential mates by hitting them with a club and dragging their unconscious bodies back to my cave? Historical precedant really should not influence our eating, unless history literally says 'if you eat this, you will immediately and violently become sick'.

When people ate these natural things, they also expected to not live far beyond the age of 30. we didn't fix this by just 'eating better'. We did it by being really SMART and using SCIENCE to lengthen our lifespan. We use pesticides and stuff like that FOR GOOD REASONS. Assuming that every big company has it out for your life makes no sense. They can't make money if their product killed people; it's in their best interest to feed you food that WON'T kill you.

It just seems silly to see a lot of sensationlist crepe gets bandied about simply because the people pushing their 'eat clean' diets use specific words and fears to try and sway the average person.

*end rant mode*

Let the conflicting opinions begin!

1) We've tracked my family line back several hundred years, way before food was modernized, and they lived to be 80 or so. I disagree with your premis that this wasn't an expectation because this has always been an expectation in my family.

2) Food science has evolved quicker than man has evolved, so no man has not evolved to process "processed foods" efficiently yet, which I think you're sort of getting at.

3) Pesticides - my body is not made to process poisons, I'd be surprised if yours is either

4) Added hormones in foods - my body makes it's own hormones, when I consume other hormones it throws my natural balance out of balance. Again, I'd be surprised if this wasn't the case for most people.

Controversial maybe? Opinion based on only opinion and missing large points of fact, definitely.

brandiuntz

I hear the word 'natural' thrown around a lot. Somewhere down the line, a lot of people have confused 'good for you' with 'natural'.

So true. "All Natural" has become the latest marketing ploy for supplements/food. We need to read labels and know what's in our food/supplements/vitamins to really know if something is healthy.

kerriBB37

I'm not in the mood for anything controversial because, well, it is Friday afternoon.. but I will say that this last week (starting Monday morning) I have followed a strict Paleo diet. I do CrossFit 5-6 days a week and it was a "challenge" proposed by our coaches. I have been CrossFitting for 7 weeks and hadn't lost any weight, I KNOW I am a lot stronger and look better, but no change on the scale. This past week (weighed in today) I lost 2.2 #. Now, to ME that was success. I have been on MFP for 200+ days straight and hit a pretty big plateau in May. I changed up my workouts and starting kicking major *kitten*. No change on the scale though. Furthermore (and what matters to ME) is that I feel GREAT! All I have eaten (and a lot of it) is lean beef, turkey, chicken, shrimp, veggies galore, every nut you can think of and fruit. My energy level is through the roof, I lifted more this week (ie. 165# back squat, 80# push press, 175# deadlift) than I ever have. Those are the little gifts that I've received from the Paleo lifestyle, and it's only been 5 days.

111408

They can't make money if their product killed people;

I'd just like to point out that tobacco is a HUGE industry, and their product kills people and they still make a TON of money.

That being said, I agree with you to an extent on some of the stuff you said. Mostly I think people should do what makes them feel healthy, if its drinking milk and eating fruit but no eggs fine. If they can eat Lean Cuisines all day long and feel healthy, so be it. To each their own.

cvaneaton

Thanks for sharing your rant! You have some good points and a great sense of :laugh:

katapple

Should I also find potential mates by hitting them with a club and dragging their unconscious bodies back to my cave?

:laugh:

Dornroschen

I eat as clean as possible, because I can't have just one serving of chips, etc. without wanting another and another and another...

Beyond that, doesn't anyone find it a bit odd that we never really crave broccoli or good for us stuff? We crave sodium-rich, high fat content foods because those things are addictive. So why wouldn't companies put a high amount of that crap into their food to guarantee higher sales?

Jemmuno

This made me laugh as well, and yes you do have a point that food company's don't sell food to kill us and I do understand where your going with your rant, HOWEVER there are foods that are healthier than others and we must keep in mind that the westernized world is capitalist so therefore our health takes back seat to the dollar. Drinking a twelve pack of mountain dew may not kill you right away, but it doesn't do anything to help the body over the long run, and rots the teeth over time.

As for the pesticides comment agreed just rinse off your fruits and veggies before you eat them.

Marig0ld

OMG this made me LOL so hard...it's good to know that not everyone hates people who don't grow their own food in their backyard. Organically. Um yeah, I work 40+ hours a week and go to school. Not happening.

Another controversial opinion I have issue with...that diets should always be plant-based because that's how humans are "meant" to eat. I call BS on that....don't even try to tell me that primitive humans would choose eating bark over a freshly killed boar or other meaty critter.. Mmmm meat.....

bry_all01

First off, saying that our bodies are meant to eat one thing versus another because that's how primal man did it is silly. Should I also find potential mates by hitting them with a club and dragging their unconscious bodies back to my cave? Historical precedant really should not influence our eating, unless history literally says 'if you eat this, you will immediately and violently become sick'.

wait....you mean to tell me that's NOT how men and women are SUPPOSED to get together? I have some stuff to sort out with my husband tonight, then..... thanks for the laugh!

YvonneMin

Very true. Many people consider vaccinations to be the best human invention ever that has benefitted humans the most. And they certainly aren't "natural".

jessradtke

Awww, man! I was agreeing with you until you hit the pesticides.

chuckyp

I don't believe all the hype either. And I, like most people, have been eating normally produced, non-organic products my whole life with no known ill-effects. While I don't know what evidence there is of trace levels of pesticides on produce having any harmful effects on consumers, I'm sure they were developed not specifically to help people, but to increase a crop's yield by having less of the crop destroyed by pests and therefore increase the productivity and profit of the company. I don't know that having a little pesticide on a fruit is any worse than having the same organically-grown fruit that has a burrowing insect, fungus, or disease that could have been prevented by the application of pesticides or fungicides.

darklord48

Arsenic is natural, should I be eating that?

Natural is the next sales word, just like putting "No sugar added" on things that never had sugar, or advertising "Fat Free" on foods like jello.

tlrunyon

"Primal" man as you call it actually lived to be over 100 years old :happy:

It's when all the junk started to be added to our wonderful food that the age expectancy has decreased.

But on another note, I read a sign at my chiropractor's office that read: "I'd rather risk the chance of wearing out than rusting out". So in the big picture, we'll just take good care of ourselves, not over eat, and keep moving.

aj_rock

To answer some statements... not gonna quote because that would take a lot of space.

Cigarette companies and junk food companies operate on a different basis than most. They concentrate on getting you to like their products DESPITE well known data that says they will kill you slowly. If milk was deadly, I doubt even the most hardcore milk drinkers would continue drinking it.

Pesticides and the like, while not good for us, is part of what keeps the food industry alive. I don't have any official sources off the top of my head, but if EVERYONE ate organic, natural food, then the worldwide food supply would go right down the sh***er. Pesticides, growth hormone, all that stuff has a net BENEFIT to the natural balance of things. Why? Because natural organic product gets DESTROYED by the very things that pesticide prevent! Most organic crops have very poor yield ratios because of this.

And man hasn't evolved it's eating system PERIOD in like, forever. If processed food was truly inedible, then the consequences would be a lot worse than an upset stomach or two.

Heatherbelle_87

I dont think he's encouraging unhealthy foods, I just think he's pointing out this marketing as "natural" doesnt necessarily make the food better for you. There are PLENTY of processed foods that are made with "natural ingredients" and about 5 preservatives that are not. There are NO FDA guidelines for certain marketing words yet. And basically, there's no need to push your food ideas on others, I like my periodic mac n cheese, it must be kraft, the blue box, and preferrably in shapes, yet 95% of the time I eat gluten free, cooked at home, fruits veggies and proteins.

bcattoes

This made me laugh as well, and yes you do have a point that food company's don't sell food to kill us and I do understand where your going with your rant, HOWEVER there are foods that are healthier than others and we must keep in mind that the westernized world is capitalist so therefore our health takes back seat to the dollar. Drinking a twelve pack of mountain dew may not kill you right away, but it doesn't do anything to help the body over the long run, and rots the teeth over time.

As for the pesticides comment agreed just rinse off your fruits and veggies before you eat them.

You can't rinse pesticides off food because with each spray the pesticide soaks into the soil and is then 'consumed' by the plant roots so that it becomes part of the plant.

I have read a lot startling and what I believe may be potentially dangerous stuff on this site. But for me, I like to follow the evidence. And most evidence points toward regular exercise and diet rich in fruits/vegetables, whole grains and lean proteins, with plant proteins included, and limiting saturated fat, but consuming moderate amounts of unsaturated. So that's what I do. I try to buy organic when it's avaiable and affordable but if it's not I buy the pesticide laden stuff.

Heatherbelle_87

Pesticides and the like, while not good for us, is part of what keeps the food industry alive. I don't have any official sources off the top of my head, but if EVERYONE ate organic, natural food, then the worldwide food supply would go right down the sh***er. Pesticides, growth hormone, all that stuff has a net BENEFIT to the natural balance of things. Why? Because natural organic product gets DESTROYED by the very things that pesticide prevent! Most organic crops have very poor yield ratios because of this.

you typed faster then me! and he's correct. Now given flooding and draught can still kill our crops organic or pesticide use (hello look at the midwest! and east right now!) but if we hadnt genetically augmented certain foods, there would be a much larger global hunger issue. That is undeniable.

Heatherbelle_87

ok so for all of you that despise pesticides, and given they are soaked into some foods, not just on the skin, can I ask, Do you drink tap water? straight from the tap? or a public drinking fountain?

MarlenaLB

Assuming that every big company has it out for your life makes no sense. They can't make money if their product killed people; it's in their best interest to feed you food that WON'T kill you.

... cigarette companies? hello??!
i mean there's just so much i can say in response to this. pesticides are used so that there is more product to be sold, period. because it makes more MONEY.

.... everything is about money. companies dont care about their customers. lets get real here..

obviously everything is relative, and no you wont DIE from eating a bag of cheetos once a week, but if you eat them all day every day it WILL negatively affect your health.

luckily its not my job or concern to convince anyone, so carry on lol

I agree. All natural is over used. Just because something is natural doesn't mean it is safe. Produce you can wash off so I think an apple is an apple. They put hormones in chickens so the will be full grown in just 6 weeks. The more chickens they sell the more money they make. So if the hormone does that to the chicken what do you think that it is going to do to you? No you may not die from the additives and hormones immediately but it def causes health problems. Cancer being a huge one.

AlsDonkBoxSquat

ok so for all of you that despise pesticides, and given they are soaked into some foods, not just on the skin, can I ask, Do you drink tap water? straight from the tap? or a public drinking fountain?

If I had another source I'd use it, the thought of consuming hormones and chemicles in my drinking water disgusts me. Unfortunately I don't live next to a mountain spring, so beggers can't be choosers.

hikeout470

A couple books that come to mind...

1. "Fast Food Nation"

2. "Seeds of Deception"

3. "Fats that heal, fats that kill"

I don't think the word natural has a legal definition when it comes to food, so I think it is important to use common sense and to educate yourself about our choices. If you think the foods you eat that are massed produced by big industry are produced primarily with your nutrition in mind, I would have to state that my opinion is you are kidding yourself. They put stuff in there that is just not right. You would be surprised!