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Why Not the Everything-in-Moderation Diet?
By Julianne Chickering
Atkins. South Beach. Low-fat. Low-sugar. Low-carb. Vegan. High-dairy. Madness. As if the average Joe isn't already completely confused about what is healthy and how to lose weight, a new book now suggests that "industrialized" foods need to be added to the illustrious "bad foods" list. In a book entitled Real Foods, Nina Planck claims our real nutritional nemesis is processed or altered foods such as margarine, pasteurized and homogenized fat-free milk, and refined corn oil.
True, eating too many starchy, sweetened, fried foods will take a toll on your figure and your health, and it is also true that fresh-from-the-farm milk, meats, and cheeses are safe to eat as long as they were gathered and stored hygienically and eaten in a timely manner. However, getting farm-fresh milk products on a regular basis is just not practical for the vast masses of our country who live in the sprawling urban and suburban areas where a single cow cannot be found for miles, let alone a dairy farm. Even in rural places these products are not always available; it is illegal to sell raw (unpasteurized) milk for human consumption in eighteen states. And while the separation of fat from whole milk to make low-fat milk -- and the heat of pasteurization -- may remove some of the vitamins A and D, milk is again fortified with them after processing.
Fresh fruits, vegetables, cheeses, and meats are certainly flavorful and nutrient-rich, but balanced nutrition can also be obtained from their store-brand, canned, frozen, homogenized, shipped-from-abroad counterparts. Consumers may also take advantage of the neighborhood farmers markets loaded with colorful, locally grown products during the times of the year when these markets are open, but they need not feel guilty about putting store-brand bread in their carts along with eggs from out of state, pre-washed spinach in a bag, or (gasp) perhaps even a chocolate bar during their next trip to the downtown grocery store.
Food choice alone does not make a person healthy or unhealthy. It is a combination of genetic factors, lifestyle choices, diet, and exercise. Instead of eliminating completely or over-emphasizing the importance of a certain food, people should eat a wide variety of foods in moderation and get regular exercise. Fruits, vegetables, bread, dairy, and meat all have their place in a healthy diet and the occasional brownie or beer isn't going to instigate a medical nightmare either as long as they remain an occasional treat. Walking to the store will do you more good than worrying about the nutritional value of the pasteurized milk you get once you arrive.
Julianne Chickering is a research intern at the American Council on Science and Health (ACSH.org, HealthFactsAndFears.com).
LGK (July 20, 2006)
Okay. So I’ve gotten up on this soap box before. Maybe it is just something I think about a lot lately. You ask, "Why not the everything-in-moderation diet?" I agree completely, but if the average American is going to achieve the all-important "moderation" part of the plan, then your list of what makes a person healthy or unhealthy needs to include “psychological factors” and “environmental factors.” We possess intelligence and self-will, but we also possess automatic responses. Like every other living thing, our bodies and our minds are programmed for maximizing day-to-day survival and reproduction, not for maximizing overall health nor longevity. In an environment where day-to-day, or even meal-to-meal, food availability is unpredictable, it is advantageous to over-eat at every possible occasion.. It seems that we are not programmed to ensure that our long-term energy intake and expenditure are balanced, but rather are programmed to keep our energy balance positive (more intake than expenditure) as often as is possible. In short, we are programmed to be gluttonous and slothful because that maximizes day-to-day survival. Overriding that tendency is a challenge – a psychological challenge. Has there ever been another society in human history in which the people had to give any thought at all not only to not eating too much, but also to ensuring that they are getting enough physical exertion? We talk so much about how beneficial it is even to walk for 30 minutes a day. Maybe it is the proliferation of motor vehicles, private and public, and the demise of corner stores that is making us fat. We build entire neighborhoods that don’t have sidewalks. Many of us cannot reach our nearest health club without driving our cars there. I’m not suggesting that psychology is the most important factor for everyone. Granted, there are many folks who deftly restrain their eating and run for hours on treadmills to nowhere, bless their healthy hearts. Yet for many of us psychology is a factor that must be included in our list of what it takes to achieve good overall health. Perhaps spiritually-based programs, like Twelve-Step (Alcoholics Anonymous and such), are on the right track because often spiritual development is focused on overcoming the “natural man.”
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