Category: Thoughts on Food and Nutrition

Eating Red Meat Increases Risk Of…

Posted by foodess on Tue 24th of Mar, 2009 08:17:46 AM

Death. This according to a recent study published in the New York Times. Hmm… And all this time I thought we all had the same risk of death. Like, 100%.

The thing that irks me about publications like this, is that it totally freaks people out using dumbed-down, dramatic phrases such as “those who ate the most red meat were most likely to die”. I wonder how many people are giving the poor cow the heave-ho based on research that is obviously lacking for controls? For example, are those whose meat consumption is greatest eating meat at the exclusion of things like grains and vegetables? Are they getting the meat in the form of daily slabs of fast-food hamburger meat, with a ginormous side of fries and a litre of coke? Are the people who eat more meat eating more of everything in general? Are the people who eat less meat more health-conscious in general? Don’t forget the “French paradox” where people eat plenty of red meat, usually with a side of butter, and have much lower rates of cardiovascular disease than in North America.

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Eat what you love. Stop when you’re satisfied.

Posted by foodess on Thu 12th of Mar, 2009 08:48:23 PM

Eat carbs. Eat butter. Eat cream. Eat cake. Eat bacon. Eat chocolate (!).

Let me guess, you are thinking: Wait! Didn’t she recently mention she was one set of final exams away from a degree in Nutrition? And isn’t she just ten frenzied months of internship away from being a registered dietitian? What is this?! A dietitian *slash* butter advocate. Gasp!

Though I might spend much of my professional day promoting increased veggie intake, I stand firmly in my conviction that you should eat what you love and love what you eat. And in doing this you can be healthy and happy and fit. Take a look at so many foodie folks; food bloggers, writers, chefs, and food critics alike - people who eat for a living - who stay trim while regularly whipping up rich, delectable, lip-smacking treats. Yes, you can have your cake and your size 6 (or 14, or 2 or whatever size you are comfortable at) jeans, too.

It took me four years of studying what we should eat, to come to the conclusion that we should simply just eat. Food is such an insane pleasure. Everything to do with it - squeezing mangoes and sniffing herbs in the market, discovering new recipes that inspire your imagination, moments spent in the kitchen chopping and seasoning and creating something wonderful, sharing a scrumptious dessert straight from your oven, the sheer delight of biting into something delicious … Food is just one of the richest human experiences.

So, for that reason, I will share with you the most riveting yet simplistic revelation born of my nutrition education joint with my feverish love for edibles. Are you ready? Here it is: Eat what you love. Stop when you are satisfied.

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