Your food is no cleaner than mine

Ill have you know i clean my own game...my rabbits are VERY clean. AND i wrap it in nitrite free bacon before basting it in BBQ sauce.

I'm not the right person for the rest of your question, because I don't label my diet as clean, and I don't tell others to eat clean, so I'm not invested in a universal definition. When I try to eat clean, I'm trying to get the most nutrition bang for my buck. If I eat something with little macro or micronutrient value, not being in any danger of malnourishment or needing lots of calories for activities, I wouldn't see that as sticking with my clean guidelines. For me, having a goal of clean just helps me meet my calorie deficit (and maintenance, eventually). Many of the foods I include in my daily diet are processed. I like the idea of cooking my own food and knowing to the best of my knowledge what's in the food I'm eating, but most of the time, I'm not going to make my own almond milk. So I'm not opposed to processing, though I do think there is a middle ground between "NO PROCESSING" and "ALL PROCESSING IS OK." I don't care enough about the science to get into that debate, but I'm open to the idea that none of us knows the effect of every last thing out there.

I basically agree with this, but I just don't get why it's called clean eating (to be clear, I don't care if you call it that, I'm really just trying to understand). There are a whole bunch of basically conflicting definitions of clean eating, some which are basically how I eat (I'd call it trying to be health conscious or being aware and choosing consciously), and some of which are kind of hippy/granola stuff about processing, and some of which seem related to other dietary goals (I've definitely heard "eating clean" mean adhering to my pale diet). My problem with it is that I hear an implied "unlike all you other unclean eaters" whenever someone says it, and given the plethora of definitions find it an unhelpful term, but I will try to get past that. ;-)

I honestly don't understand why people care so much. Let me ask you - when someone tells you they eat vegan, do you feel they're judging you for eating meat and animal products? Does that make you feel guilty for eating chicken, putting butter on your bread or drinking a glass of milk? Are they shaming you? Or are they just telling you how they eat. I would say the latter, but to me it sounds like you're so invested in how other people eat that logically you should be feeling all of the former. The same goes if someone says they eats low carb - are they now judging you for eating nasty carbs? Or are they just describing their current macronutrient distribution?

I really don't understand why the term bothers people so much. Is it simply the label of "clean" that does it? To me, people refer to "clean" eating because most people know more or less what they're talking about when they say they eat "clean." Might their individual definition of "clean" eating differ from yours or someone else's? Probably so, but I suspect only in minor ways. Fresh veggies and grass fed beef probably fit the definition of "clean", taco bell probably does not, and there's probably some other examples that are shades of grey. Now does that somehow mean they're shaming you for eating "unclean" when they say they're trying to eat "clean?" I suspect the answer is yes only if you're really insecure. To me, someone eating "clean" is simply saying they're trying to prepare most of their own meals from fresh ingredients, rather than buying packaged meals and the like. Given that, my gut reaction to someone saying that would be "sounds good," rather than how dare you accuse me of eating unclean!

Now, as to the OP's point, is "clean" eating a helpful term? Maybe to a limited extent for people who don't count calories but as a general matter I don't think it's all that helpful, at least when it comes to weight loss.

I've crossed paths with a handful of vegans who are outright judgmental towards meat and dairy and anyone who dares eat them. One in particular was so militant he's decided to become a bio researcher intent on proving that meat and dairy are completely unhealthy for us. Most vegans don't go around pushing their beliefs, but there's definitely a loud minority.

I think the same can be said for clean eaters. Most just do their thing, but the loud minority will tell you "good luck with that cancer," "I would never eat that garbage," "That isn't real food," etc. You see it on the forums here all the time. Personally it doesn't bother me. I just roll my eyes and move on.

Now I just need to practice my condescension and irrational beliefs that when *someone else* eats the same things *I* occasionally do, that it will cause them irreparable harm while it is just a small component of my otherwise overall healthy...er, sorry...*clean* food diary.

#CleanEating4Lyfe