What Are You Eating Today?

We cannot address our health without looking at, and taking responsibility for, what we eat.

With all the various diet crazes out there, it can be easy to get swept up in whatever the current fad is, and there is no denying that every body’s needs vary. However, if I could offer you one (catchall) piece of advice, in regards to your health and diet, it would be: stop eating "low fat" food.

I'm not talking about foods that are naturally low in fat, like fruits, vegetables, and whole grains (that are hopefully not covered in glysophate). I'm talking about foods that have been altered—that have had the fat removed from them. This process is not only unnatural, but it changes the composition of what you are eating.

Fat naturally adds flavor and creates a sensation of satiation between the gut and the brain.

When these companies process food, removing the fat, they often replace it with sugar, and or other "flavors" ie, chemicals. It is sugar that actually creates more inflammation in the body, rather than fat, and sugar that leads to heart disease and diabetes, which has been on the rise since the 60's.

Our bodies need fat; our brains are made of fat and need it to function. We have been consuming fat for as long as we have been evolving on this planet, but sugar and other chemicals… not so much.

Case in point:

A good friend of mine has been dealing with some serious health challenges. I went for a time to help take care of him, and basically took over food prep and kitchen care. I noticed that he had a bottle of "low fat" half and half in his fridge, and became instantly suspicious. Now, take into consideration that his condition was going to require him to "cut" fat out of his diet, so in his mind, he was just following the required prescription.

However, upon looking up the ingredients in the half and half, we came to discover that what they were using as an emulsifying agent (instead of fat) was directly linked to the health condition that he was currently suffering from.

We also discovered that a small amount of "real" half and half—whose ingredients are cream and milk—contained under the amount of fat (in grams) that he was allowed to consume, and to no surprise—was more satisfying!

This is not a "conspiracy" this is history.

In the 60's the sugar industry began a smear campaign against fat. This led to the introduction of more processed foods, and more sugar. Sugar, by the way, has even stronger addictive components than cocaine. And since the thing (fat) that actually signals satiation to your gut and brain has been removed and replaced with a highly addictive ingredient, you wind up eating more of the "low fat" shit, than you would have eaten of something that had the full amount of fat, feeling less satisfied.

So how did the FDA and sugar industry get away with making fat the enemy and loading all of our shelf-bought foods with extra sugar?

They cherry-picked their data! Duh.

Which (should) lead us to ask: Is mainstream "science" really our "friend"? Or are we all just subject to highest paying "pusher"? A question that encompasses so many things that we will return to another time.

So my lovely fatheads, stop making fat a "bad" word in your nutritional arsenal and get out there and enjoy some flavor.

And here are a few basic guidelines for choosing what you eat:

1. The fewer ingredients, the better.

2. More (natural) color equals vitality in foods.

3. “Reduced” anything means it’s been fucked with.

4. Stick to the outer rims of the grocery stores when shopping. Pick live foods, whole foods, and meats and cheeses (when possible) that have not been treated with antibiotics, and avoid “franken food”.

5. Pick your poison: Maintaining a completely “puritanical” attitude, in regards to our food, is neither fun nor realistic. So choose the edges that you want to play with. I, for example, usually eat at home, and I usually eat whole foods. When it comes to my sugar consumption, I’d rather have a cocktail or a glass of wine than a slice of cake. And there is no way I’m giving up my grocery store jalapeno poppers that I buy while shopping, and greedily devour (while still hot) in my car as soon as I’m done. It’s just too important to me. However, in moderation, 3 or 4 once a week is plenty.

6. Inform yourself. Seriously. Read a bit about nutrition. Take an interest in your health, and your body. Learn how we work at a biochemical level as opposed as to what is being sold to you.

7. And last but not least: Get “below” the commercial messaging, and feel into your body! Below the cravings and instilled messages about who we are and what we “should” eat—we know what we need. Allow yourself to connect with that, feel into it, and honor it day to day.

Disclaimer: I realize there is a bit of privilege attached to being able to choose what we eat as it relates to cost-effectiveness and availability. That being said, we can pay the cost now or later in health bills and prescription meds, but you can also bet that is what the “establishment” wants: more sick people, more money, and more people on meds. So… REBEL!

Thank you for attending my Justice Talk.

Image: Pablo Merchán Montes

Here is a little easy-to-digest video on the subject.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLtQLDptI1g