NY Times article: Unhappy Meals

I didn't read the whole thing (I hate reading off a computer, so I'll have to wait until I'm at work and print it out, since I'm out of ink at home!), but it looks like an excellent article.
 
Long article, but well worth the read. Makes me realize that eating clean is indeed the only way to go....
 
Yes it is long, but Kathryn, I thought of you first while reading it. It made me question some of my own choices which have gotten better in the last 12 months, but still have a ways to go.

I was intrigued by the term 'edible food like substances' verses FOOD


Judy "Likes2bfit"


If you fail to plan, then you plan to fail.
 
>I was intrigued by the term 'edible food like substances'
>verses FOOD

Though I'd sometimes question the use of 'edible' for some of them!

From my quick scan of the article, that was one of the points I thought was most important: out bodies were made to eat real foods, not substances created in a lab, or isolated/concentrated extracts of real foods and isolate nutrients (which are more and more being shown to be harmful...like vitamin A and beta carotene in supplement form). And I think that's important not just from a health persepective, but from a weight perspective, since our bodies know what to do with real food, and since they are better nourished on high-nutrient-density foods, which many 'real' foods are (vs the higher-calorie, nutrient poor 'fake' foods) our appetites are better controlled with real foods.

Often, when I go to the 'regular' grocery store, before I get to the produce section, I'm overwhelmed by the displays of 'stuff' that people put in their bodies that are far from food. And those are the things that often are the most well-displayed and eye-catching (obviously, 'crap' has a higher profit margin than real foods).

I remember going to one grocery store for the first time, and soon realizing that everything I wanted seemed to be hidden behind a post or another display. I checked out my theory when hitting the peanut butter aisle, and wouldn't you know it, the Smucker's Natural PB was behind another post! LOL! (Guess they figure people looking for the healthier options are willing to hunt for them, while those who buy junk and non-food foods need to be enticed more?)
 
Thanks, Judy! This was a really good article. I forced my DS and DH to listen to it. :) I had no idea that Thyme had so many different antioxidants. Wow! This has definitely made me rethink a few of my choices...
 
Thanks, Judy.

It was nice of you to provide the link. It took a while to get through the whole article, but I'm glad I took the time to do so. It was quite informative and a great reminder.

I especially like how he reminded us that energy bars and the like are "edibile food substances," too, and not designed the way nature intended. Sometimes I tend to think I am doing myself so much good by eating stuff designed in a lab with the latest scientific information and nutritional breakthroughs. Maybe this is not the case.

I noticed he suggested for us to shop at farmer's markets. You can't get much closer to nature's intention than that! Almost every weekend I shop at one of the farmer's markets near me. But I live in Lafayette, CA, which is right next door to Berkeley, CA, the author's home. We have a huge selection of farmer's markets here. About 7 in the towns within a 20 minute drive from me. But I wonder if that is true for everyone else in the country. Is this just a luxury? Or do you all have a lot of farmer's markets nearby?

Nicole
 
Judy, thanks so much for the link. I read the article with great interest and thought he made several valid points. I like his take on the ideology of nutritionism, and his remarks about enjoying our food and not just eating for the sake of fueling our bodies really struck a cord with me.
 
I finally had the chance to print out and read the article.
I like it on two counts: 1) the information is pretty spot on (though I'm not sure about freezing foods destroying fiber, never heard that before); 2) it was intelligently and interestingly written (I love reading good writing!).

One thing I don't fully agree with: he states that you should avoid any foods that make health claims, because they are usually not real foods. I think that's a rather too-simplistic generalization, since nowdays, real foods (like oatmeal and blueberries and whatever) often carry health claims.
 

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