Go with Your Gut

[Beavs]

I enjoyed this opinion piece form the New York Times written by Harriet Brown.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/20/opinion/20brown.html
Yep, that's right. Food is meant to be enjoyed. Guilt is unnecessary and the resulting stress will do more damage than the the slice of cheese pizza ever could. No need to confess what you have eaten, or have not eaten, to gain approval from other food deprived martyrs. Use some common sense and take a little time to savor the good stuff with good friends and family, whatever your idea of good stuff is. :9

 

[sparrow]

Thanks for posting this Beavs. I enjoyed reading it.

It's tough finding that balance sometimes. I'm doing a health and fitness unit with my (homeschooled) niece and nephew. Today we read a kid's book on healthy eating that used the terms "green light" food, "yellow light" food and "red light" food. I think that's a great way to explain but I disliked that the book kept saying that "red light" foods are bad and one should "stop eating them" pretty much immediately. IMO, and I know others disagree, which is fine, there is room in every diet for a bit of "red light" food. I want them to have a balanced, positive, (not restrictive) idea of healthy eating.

Sparrow

Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming ‘Wow - what a ride!’ — Peter Sage

 

[Miss Lee]

Great article! I think it makes a lot of sense. I come from an Italian family where everything was centered around food and family. My family always sat down around the table for dinner, a practice that is almost unheard of today. Thanks for posting.

Michele

 

[40something]

Well that's 'it' in a nutshell, Beavs. Take a little time to savor the good stuff with good friends and family. I love good food and I especially love enjoying a great meal with my family and friends. Or a bottle of wine and some really good cheese.

Somehow eating in this country became synonymous with bad behavior. We all need to eat to fuel our bodies, especially those who are physically active which includes everyone on this forum. I know, people have hang-ups with food for whatever reasons but wouldn't it be nice if you could wave a magic wand and take away all the feelings of guilt when we have a chocolate mousse for dessert?

I'm fortunate that my mother is a good cook and always prepared healthy meals for our family. She did not have any body image issues so us girls never heard her talk about her weight or how she needed to lose weight. We never even had a weight scale in our home. My mother was a very positive role model for us growing up and myself and my sister's have all emulated her cooking and attitude.

It all starts in the home. If you make enjoying a homecooked meal a priority in your house, your children will grow up feeling the importance of that family time together.

 

[pink_fortitude]

That is really cool! I have never thought of that, but it really does make sense. Thank you so much for sharing! I actually do like cauliflour, though. And Thai. Well, what don't I like?... I guess my saliva glands are pretty much never getting a break!

Missy

 

[buffettgirl]

I enjoyed reading that. Thank you for posting it. Sparrow, I am familiar with a red light/green light diet that was developed at The Children's Institute of Pittsburgh for people with Prader Willi Syndrome (my DS). It was made simple so that people with mental disablities could follow it. I imagine the book your niece and nephew are reading is similar.

 

[SRP]

Reminds me of the "foodie" thread from last week, and how so many posters talked about truly enjoying food. It's definitely important! I've had to rush meals sometimes, and the food ends up just sitting like a lump in my stomach. Ugh. Much better for me to take my time and enjoy it! And I am definitely one of those who needs fats (cheese, especially!!) to really feel satisfied with a meal. So I eat them.

 

[lindzebird]

Hi Sparrow,

Just thought I'd pass this link onto a book that I saw the other day that teaches more moderation and healthy habits for kids which may fit a little more into your view of balanced, positive, (not restrictive) idea of healthy eating.

I thought the illustrations are a little too young for older kids, but the information sounds really good.

http://www.amihungry.com/good-eater.shtml

Lindzebird

 

[LauraMax]

Cool article, thanks for sharing. Personally I do watch my diet fairly closely, but I don't feel guilty when I cheat (well, maybe just a little depending on how badly I cheat).

But, I've always thought food was one of the few physical pleasures in life that comes with no strings attached. Also I feel like constantly depriving ourselves of things we really enjoy has its own adverse psychological effects.

It's OK to splurge once in a while! We're only human, after all.

 

[sparrow]

>Hi Sparrow,
>
>Just thought I'd pass this link onto a book that I saw the
>other day that teaches more moderation and healthy habits for
>kids which may fit a little more into your view of balanced,
>positive, (not restrictive) idea of healthy eating.
>
>I thought the illustrations are a little too young for older
>kids, but the information sounds really good.
>
>http://www.amihungry.com/good-eater.shtml
>
>Lindzebird

Thank you! I think I am going to order the book! Sparrow

Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming ‘Wow - what a ride!’ — Peter Sage

 

[Beavs]

That was me who brought up the foodie thread. After reading many of the comments posted to the forum I began to feel as if I was doing something wrong by not following a "clean" (definition of clean varies widely apparently) diet or some other semi or ultra restrictive diet. I started to wonder if I needed to confess my sins to the Food Police "Today I ate a slice of pizza and an evil sugary little cupcake. Please oh please forgive me! I'll eat nothing but watercress for the rest of the week"

I enjoyed reading this editorial and I thought I might share it with others who could appreciate the message and remember that life is short and it is okay, in fact important, to enjoy food however you choose (in moderation of course!). Cheers!