Sunday, March 10, 2013

Food and Guilt. Guilt and Food.

Why, oh why do we feel guilty when we eat certain things? Is it because the diet industry has told us to be ashamed when we eat food with fat? Food that's been fried? Bread? Brie? That box of Oreos that we stash in a secret hiding place for emergencies? Now let me ask, when's the last time anyone felt awful for eating too many Brussels sprouts or broccoli? Who profits off of these negative emotions generated by the food industry? (probably the people that market boxed "solutions" to the given problems, which are more often than not a bigger problem than the one it's trying to "solve;" for example, taking naturally occurring fat out of food and replacing it with horribly unhealthy fillers when most fat isn't even a real problem in real food)

I've found one way to help combat negative emotions associated with food. It's simple, really. Get the highest quality food you can find and feel really good about what you're putting into your body. You want cake? Great! Me too. But let's make it ourselves from scratch (no, that doesn't mean from a Betty Crocker box) in our own kitchen with our own hands and our own love. Start with organic flour, grass-fed butter (I buy Kerrygold in bulk at Costco), organic sugar, organic free-range eggs, real vanilla, etc. I make the best damn cake you'll ever eat because of the way it's prepared. All it takes is a little time and effort. Should you eat it all the time? Moderation is definitely key with sugar and grains. Listen to your body. The more you listen and the better you feed yourself, the less you'll be wanting these things anyway.

Same goes for bread. Some of us beat ourselves up over eating it because all we hear when we look at magazines or turn on daytime talk shows is "Carbs are BAD!!" Well some definitely are, but I'm more interested in where the carbs are coming from. Are you buying the $0.79 loaf that can last an eternity on the shelf at Wal-Mart or are you getting the $2.99 freshly baked organic french loaf from Whole Foods? I can guarantee you'll feel much better after eating the fresh organic one than the cheaply made one with questionable ingredients.

Convenience food is made for the benefit of the companies selling it, not for the benefit of our bodies. They find shortcuts to increase their profits at the expense of our health. Do you really want to put your hard-earned money into those pockets? I certainly don't. Remember a general rule: food that can go bad is good for you. Food that can't go bad is not good for you.

Ease those feelings of guilt by making each trip to the grocery store your best ever. Load up on farm-fresh organic foods and find recipes to replicate your favorite treats. The less boxes you bring home to your kitchen, the better. Your stress level will go down and so will your waistline. Little by little you'll prefer the stuff you make over the convenience foods everyone is so strangely dependent upon. Your body is smart. Your taste buds will change. You will love everything about food because the negative emotions will be long gone. What do you have to lose by trying?