To Eat or Not to Eat

Eat This, Don’t Eat That—Ugh!

Weight Watchers, Atkins, Paleo, Mediterranean—the list of diets would probably fill this page. Eat mostly protein, don’t eat any animal products, eat only raw foods. A person could get whiplash trying to follow dietary advice. Butter has become better than margarine again; eggs are no longer cholesterol villains. Lately I have seen whole-milk yogurts being advertised and now the talk is that whole dairy fat contributes benefits to a healthy diet.

Which is it, people? What I come away with is that either our science on human nutrition is sadly lacking or the food and diet industries profiting from the obsession with our bodies knows no bounds—moral or common sense. As in most things, it’s probably a combination. One thing I know, when some study says this or that food or supplement is the new wonder food or drug, ask who funded the study (did the egg industry fund the research that says eggs are good now, for instance) and whether other researchers can duplicate the results.

So, What Should We Eat?

Of all the diets that have come and gone, the Mediterranean diet seems to hold merit with most doctors and dieticians. Just in case you don’t know it, it recommends plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables—seven or more servings a day—olive oil and/or nuts and seeds, lean protein, especially fish, and whole grains.

Quinoa seems fashionable at the moment. Others include brown rice, oatmeal, and multigrain breads. No one ever mentions corn or grits, which I find interesting. All grains are carbohydrates, and corn has good fiber and nutrients, though perhaps not as many as the others. I haven’t researched this.

 What Not to Eat

It is clear that too much saturated fat and sugar will cause obesity and possible diabetes, heart disease, many say, cancer. What constitutes too much continues to be debated. I read that a woman should not have more than twenty-five grams of sugar or six teaspoons a day.

To put that in perspective, one non-diet, not plain, six-ounce cup of yogurt has nineteen grams, though some of that amount comes from the milk and not added sugar. How much of each is not delineated on the package I checked. One twelve-ounce can of regular Mountain Dew soda has forty-six grams of sugar.

Six teaspoons seems a little restrictive to me. Even if you only consumed one soda a week, it would go over the limit. Basically, common sense has to rule the day. Eat mostly healthy foods that your body needs and keep non-nutritious foods that make you happy to a small percent of your diet—most recommend no more than twenty percent. And, hey, keep watching all the new findings. Maybe they’ll come up with calorie-free ice cream that tastes like Ben and Jerrys. I can dream.