Clinton on Health & Wellness

I came to a realization last week that quite often we listen to self proclaimed experts, and likely believe what they have to say.  Probably because we THINK that they know better than us.

I ran across an article from Time Magazine today, it was written in 1995.  Have a peek at it here.

If you don’t want to read the article, he was a big Internet naysayer.  The author’s opinion was that the Internet would go nowhere, and that it was a bunch of hype.

I get that it’s an opinion, and that everyone has one… but if you take a step back, and look at this from the point of view of a business person in 1995 – you are making a decision about building a website.  Something that connects people online, and you read that.  You can go one of two ways – naysay the naysayer, or march to the beat of your own drum.

I stumbled upon another news article today.  It was about a nutrition professor who lost 27 pounds eating Twinkies and junk food.

Now… he set out to prove something.  That was that you could lose weight through calorie deprivation, regardless of how you do it.  Say by eating chocolate bars, or eating carrots (i.e. the type or quality of the food was not relevant).  It is, I believe, akin to Morgan Spurlock proving that eating nothing but fried junk will make you unhealthy if it is all that is consumed.

I find this all a bit shocking.

Didn’t you know that restricting calorie intake would result in weight loss?  Did you not know that it didn’t matter what you ate, but if you ate less you would lose weight?

Why does this stuff make headlines?

I think it’s because eating junk food and losing weight appeals to people.

I have some news for you… you can eat quality food and gain weight, and be healthy.  You can eat junk food and lose weight and be unhealthy.

The weight is not the point folks… your health is.

Common sense would say “this is probably a bad idea” but for some reason folks thing “it’s worth a try”

Let’s prove them wrong my friends… let’s do this thing right.  Who is with me?

Ok, so if you came here expecting me to tell you that McDonalds is a nutritious choice, you have come to the wrong place.

If you haven’t seen this debacle in the news, you have been living in a box.  Even I have seen it.

A woman in the US has taken a happy meal and put it on her shelf for six months, and it looks materially the same after six months as it did when she first put it on the plate.  See the photo below.

McDonalds Burger after six months

Do you find that shocking?  If so, why?

I like to ask critical questions, and I would urge you to go to your pantry, pull out a few of the things that you would consider food (start with what you were eating this morning for breakfast) and think about putting that on a plate.

What might that look like after six months?

Well… let me start with my absolute favorite “health food” – “whole grain” breakfast cereals.  Take those Cheerios, Corn Flakes, Frosted Flakes, Wheaties, or whatever and put them on a plate for six months… six years, a few decades.  What do you figure they will look like?

I have not done this, but I would imagine that those flakes of yummy goodness, regardless of their “healthy eats” claims, will still look like they do.

Why is that?

It’s processed food folks.  If it comes in a box, a tetra pack, a plastic container of some sort… odds are it could outlast you, without a lot of difficulty.

So why does it only shock people when it’s a McDonalds burger?

I don’t really know.

The bottom line here is that processed foods are not foods at all.  I just thought of another funny (and appropriate) example.

Fancy pants whole wheat bread will look like dried fancy pants whole wheat bread if you put it out on a plate.

The crappier the food, the longer that it will last on a plate, in your kitchen, as part of your science experiment.

Real foods (fruits, vegetables, meats, eggs, and so on) will all rot if left for a couple of days or weeks on the counter.  I have always said that food is best when it comes in its own packaging (shells or peels are good examples) and not a plastic wrapper.

And I think you know this instinctively.

Are you ready to step up and take complete control of your own health and wellness?

I think that the above, while certainly not foolproof, is a good acid test.  If you don’t think it will decompose, should you be putting it in your mouth?

Probably not.

So – go to your cupboard, and find anything that doesn’t come in its own wrapper, and toss it.  Stick to fresh and whole foods.

Thoughts?  Comments?  Leave them below, let’s discuss this one.