Healthy Eating...

DON'T COUNT  CALORIES 

In 1961 a physician named Herman Taller wrote a book called:  CALORIES DON'T COUNT. In fact on page 15, he declared, You can forget about calories. Dr. Taller was speaking from experience; he had been fat all his life until he realized that calories had nothing to do with his weight gain.  He had good reasons to steer his readers away from low-calorie eating because he had discovered the source of weight gain and that led him to also cite a 1951 article written by another physician - Dr. Alfred Pennington who made a rather startling claim.

     "Contrary to the claims of the low-calorie school of thought, low-calorie diets have failed under the most rigid experimental conditions.  Low-calorie diets, based on the principle of caloric requirements, are crudely devised in the service of simplicity.  There are fat people, plenty of them, who are actually starving."

 Now that's a mouthful! If these facts were known more than 60 years ago, why are we still being advised to count calories by the government and diet programs?  Healthy Eating and Living stands for HEALING. Healing today is obviously not happening from the food we're eating when the majority of Americans alone are becoming fatter and fatter. And in too many cases, contrary to industry and institutional groupthink... the problem is with the food, not the individual.

This blog - HEALING2DAY - contends that healthy eating is more a concept than a reality in a world in the midst of a global obesity epidemic. Are we really to believe a soft drink company anti-obesity ad campaign when it announcesin 2013 that all calories count?  You might, if you believe that weight gain is caused by the number of calories you eat. If that is true, then, how do you explain obesity? Either most of the world is not counting calories or the calories aren't the real reason the world is growing fatter and fatter.
       It's time for self-inquiry and to ask different kinds of questions of our political, economic, and social institutions. Understanding what is going on and into our food is going to require a different kind of mindset; a different way of thinking about our rights and food.

      For Coca Cola to run commercials in the name of fighting obesity and go unchallenged is the most spectacular kind of hyprocricy.  All calories are not, so there should be outrage. To allow our children to believe otherwise is to ignore well-established scientific evidence that questions the very theory upon which the notion of calories are based. Moreover, to let such a statement slide signals that we're buying into Coke's premise that its products are not the problem.  You can see Coke's website shift the blame for obesity when it states that individuals are responsible for eating balanced meals.  Rather than say focus on amount of sugar grams in their drinks, Coke's website stresses counting empty or "naked" calories that provide no nutritional value to a person's body. Specifically, the large beverage company says:

"Calories aren’t an ingredient, but rather the amount of energy produced when the body uses the carbohydrate, fat or protein provided by a food or beverage for fuel. Whether you’re counting calories or not, knowing how many calories are in your favorite foods and beverages can help you make balanced choices for an active, healthy lifestyle. Keep in mind that all calories count, no matter what food or beverage they come from. It’s important that your overall diet fulfills your nutrient needs, without exceeding the quantity of calories you expend every day."

The "overall diet" will have to fulfill ones needs because sugar water will not. Given the dramatic drop in sales for the company, it's not surprising that it doesn't point out that grams of sugar are different in products having the same calorie count. See for yourself.  Take a closer look at the amount of sugar grams in all sizes of Coke and all sugar waters we typically called soda or pop. There's nothing powerful about knowledge... if it's not used.  Speak out.  Speak up. Rethink your relationship with food, today.
http://productnutrition.thecoca-colacompany.com/products/coca-cola#varieties

ARE YOU EATING REAL FOOD?  HOW DO YOU KNOW?

Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) whose slogan is Food With Integrity may need to come up with a new slogan soon.  On June 18, 2013, Bloomberg Businessweek revealed that half of the food at the Denver-based company's restaurants around the country are not entirely real, but genetically modified (http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-06-18/the-genetically-modified-burrito-chipotle-tells-all).
     Basically a Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) is one whose DNA has been modified or changed. Justin Bachman, the author of the article, quotes a Chipotle spokesman as saying the chain has no intention of posting what is genetically modified on its menus. But Chipotle which Health.com calls one of the "healthiest restaurants" in America does post its ingredients online at its website (http://www.chipotle.com/en-us/menu/ingredients_statement/ingredients_statement.aspx).
     And there it becomes clear that there are a lot of items rated "G" for modified food. What is equally surprising, after a quick read, is the discovery that a not so healthy fat - hydrogenated oil - is widely used and that the pinto beans are cooked with bacon and the pork with lard.  Vegans and vegetarians had probably ought to be aware and take a closer look at what they eating at a food chain this writer has dearly loved and enjoyed.

     So what this mean for so many of us who believed Chipotle when it said it was serving us NATURAL food without preservatives when we discover that everything from the chicken and beef to the tacos, burritos, fajita vegetables, tortillas, chipotle-honey vinaigrette, and white and brown rice... SURPRISE, contains GMOs.  Does it matter?  Do you have a right to know what you're eating? Well, some people think so.  Would you pledge to avoid foods containing GMO or genetically engineered (GE) food?

     As recent as May 23, 2013 one blog (FOOD DEMOCRACY NOW) observed this:

"Incredibly, while the Chinese government is actively seeking to protect its population from untested GMO crops, the U.S. government is so much under the control of biotech lobbyists like Monsanto and DuPont that it can’t even pass a law to allow labeling of genetically engineered foods."

   And the Center for Food Safety calls for action when it declares that:  Without mandatory labeling of GE foods, consumers are being left in the dark about the foods we are purchasing and feeding our families. There is overwhelming public demand—consistently near 95%—for the labeling of GE foods.  Yet the U.S. is one of the only developed countries in the world that doesn’t require labeling; sixty-four countries have mandatory labeling policies for GE foods including Korea South, Japan, the United Kingdom, Brazil, China, South Africa, Australia, the entire European Union, and many others. Already in 2013, 37 GE labeling bills have been introduced in 21 states, including Hawaii, Washington, Indiana, Missouri, and Vermont, with many more expected by year’s end. 

Ready to take action, to step forward, to move on your beliefs?  Leave your comments below and participate in our poll.