Don't Believe Everything You Hear

Where do most people get their health and food knowledge from? The media, government, doctors and word of mouth, basically. Should we trust them? It seems that these sources aren't very trustworthy, so why don't people do their own research?

My impression of they way people 'research' their food is this: they'll click on an article on Yahoo.com, if it's convenient, or listen in when the news channel reports on the latest diets. They probably think the food pyramid, er, food plate, created by the government,  is healthy because that's what they've been told. They don't know that canola oil is bad. The labels say it's heart healthy and full of Omega 3's. Why give it a second thought?


Before I started researching for myself, never in my life would I have thought that 'healthy' whole grain was bad for me. I mean, to doubt this common knowledge is like believing in conspiracy theories! It goes against everything we've come to know. 

The USDA's recommendation to eat whole grains is based on what they call "Moderate Evidence". Sounds solid (can you sense the sarcasm?). They define "Moderate Evidence" as something that "reflects somewhat less consistent evidence or less consistent evidence. The body of evidence may include studies of weaker design and/or some inconsistency in results. The studies may be susceptible to some bias, but not enough to invalidate the results, or the body of evidence may not be as generalizable to the population of interest.".

I want more than 'moderate evidence' before I go eating 'whole' grains again. I've eliminated grains completely from my diet and I feel so much better now. If I do eat grains for whatever reason, I can tell a difference in my body almost immediately after eating them. Not a good difference, either. THAT is enough evidence for me. 

A little off subject, but the term 'whole grains' bothers me. I see it all the time plastered on packaged bread, cereal, flour, pasta, etc. When was the last time you bit down on a whole grain (in one piece) from one of those things? It's processed, not whole.

You've heard that cholesterol is bad, haven't you (from your doctor or the government, no doubt)?Well, have you heard that every cell in your body is made with cholesterol? Or that your liver makes your body's cholesterol? To me, it doesn't make sense that if our bodies need cholesterol and our liver makes cholesterol, that it would be bad for us. Here's a quote from the article "The Cholesterol Myth That Could be Harming Your Health" talking about cholesterol:

"It is taking it back to your liver so that your liver can recycle it; put it back into other particles to be taken to tissues and cells that need it," Dr. Rosedale explains. "Your body is trying to make and conserve the cholesterol for the precise reason that it is so important, indeed vital, for health."

Stay with me here, I'm laying bread crumbs. Grains cause inflammation in the body. It could be anywhere in your body - stomach, skin, arteries, etc. Remember, doctors and the government tells you that whole grains are heart healthy. Well, inflammation is linked to many, many diseases, one of them being heart disease. So, the very thing that is supposed to be helping our heart (grains) is hurting it (inflammation). 

What is inflammation?A small example of inflammation is if you were to get cut -  inflammation springs into action.  The blood vessels constrict to keep you from bleeding too much, the blood becomes thicker so it can clot, cells multiply to repair the damage, etc. Then the cholesterol comes in to replace your damaged cells. No cell can be made without it. So, your liver will make more of it if it needs to. 

I think the doctors and medical researchers are seeing the increase of cholesterol with heart disease present and thinking that the cholesterol must be causing the heart disease. When in fact, the cholesterol is only at increased levels because it's trying to replace the damaged cells because of the heart disease.

Now that you know a little about cholesterol, do you trust the government when they say that cholesterol is bad and chemically made vegetable oils and whole grains are good? 

Alright, so what about the doctors in this country? They're in line with the government on what's healthy and what's not. It's not surprising. In medical school, they require medical students to only have 25 HOURS worth of nutrition study. As in, they only study the way food affects our bodies for less than one week! A recent study found that most medical school students don't even meet the required 25 hours! How will Doctors know if whole grains or anything else for that matter, are healthy or not?

It drives me crazy that people don't know that what they're eating is so unhealthy and that there are doctors telling them otherwise. How will they ever find out if they don't take the time and effort to do the research themselves? Will they ever know that they don't need to take prescription drugs if they just changed their diet? The doctors won't tell them, they get too much money from the drug companies. They'd be shooting themselves in the foot.

Ideal Weight ≠ Healthy

There's a certain mentality in America when it comes to health and food. People think just because they're skinny that means they're healthy. If I tell someone I'm on a 'diet', they'll usually tell me that I don't need to be because I'm skinny. I try to explain that I'm just trying to be healthy, but they usually don't seem to understand why. 

It's like some people think all food is good for is taste and body weight only. It's so much more than that!

A person could look like the picture of health on the outside, but on the inside they could be having all kinds of health problems (heartburn, constipation, low energy, etc.). They don't realize that what their eating is causing these problems. They probably think it's just apart of life like I used to. For example, I thought you were supposed to have an unpleasant full feeling after eating and I though burping was normal, too. I don't deal with those things any more! FYI - Too much burping after eating is a sign your body is not digesting the food well.

The reason I eat Paleo is that I don't want to be miserable with problems like heartburn, headaches, stomach issues and conditions like diabetes and heart disease. When I get older, I don't want to have to take multiple prescription drugs that give me horrible side effects. I want to live a good life in a healthy body. 

I think some older people don't know if their health problems are because of their old age or the pills their taking! I don't want to end up like that and I don't want anyone else to be like that either.

 I hope this post helped you realize that food is important to your health and well being. Research the food you eat. Don't take someone's word for it, find out for yourself!