Good Health Doesn’t Come In A Pill
July 12th, 2009
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I’ve never written much about food, but I came across an interesting post by Evita Ochel that I had to comment on. The post is called Going Behind the Scenes of the Food We Are Told to Eat By The News Media.
We hear about all kinds of foods that the media says we should eat. We’re told to eat salmon for the omega-3 fatty acids. We’re told to drink red wine for the resveratrol. We’re told to drink milk for the calcium. We’re even told to eat chocolate for the antioxidants.
We hear about a magical substance, and think that it’s the key to good health. So anything that contains it must be a miracle food. Red wine contains resveratrol, so it must give you immunity from cancer. Never mind all the alcohol. I suppose paint thinner or gasoline or rattlesnake venom would be nutritious too, if they added resveratrol.
Evita clears up some misconceptions about these foods. My favorite part: to get enough resveratrol from red wine, you’d need to drink 1,000 bottles a day. Bottoms up!
Why do we go nuts over every potential miracle food? I think it comes down to seeking an easy solution. If we can isolate the one chemical we really need, we can put good health in a pill.
So when one thing turns out not to be a magical substance, we go looking for the next one. Soy, beta-carotene, vitamin C…surely there must be one simple thing we can take for perfect health without restricting our diet in any way, or doing any of that damn exercise. What kind of a cruel world do we live in where effort is required?
But no, there’s no ambrosia that will make up for all the crap you eat and all the healthy food you don’t. It will take effort.
Evita points out that instead of eating junk because it contains trace elements of a good thing, we can just get that good thing from its source. Instead of eating salmon laced with mercury, pesticides, and antibiotics, we can simply eat the plants that the salmon get their omega-3 from. And instead of becoming winos in the name of good health, we can just eat red grapes.
Many years ago, I was at a wedding and deciding what to drink. I said “I like white wine much better, but everyone says red wine is good for you.” My friend replied, “Well, it’s not like people train for marathons by drinking red wine.”
July 12th, 2009 at 10:03 pm
Hi Hunter.
We’re always on that search for the easy solutions. I think some have the thought in the back of their minds that new research will provide them with quicker and easier ways to get what they need from food, and so they seek out the items that match that perspective.
Exercise sure does have a negative connotation to some individuals, although that would seem to be counter-intuitive.
July 13th, 2009 at 2:25 am
A 1000 bottles a day? Hmmm … can I at least spread it over 3 sittings?
I do like Dr. Fuhrman’s concepts of “nutritional density” across a spectrum. It’s principle-based and I’ve seen people with great results. That said, I still keep finding so much competing or contradictory information, that it’s really about testing results, measuring, and balancing with the basics, including convenience and life style.
July 13th, 2009 at 11:04 am
Hi,
Evita has quickly become one of my favorite bloggers because of her integrity, honesty, backed with solid background in science. I love her wellness posts! And it’s interesting more and more of us are coming back to the basics of wellness, including healthy eating.
Evita recently quit her “day job” so I think we can expect her more of personal development posts, too
July 13th, 2009 at 9:07 pm
@ Armen, exercise has definitely become a smaller part of our lives. Think about how jobs have changed. We used to get paid to exercise, now we have to pay to exercise.
@ J.D., 3 sittings? No way! Chug it! Chug it! I know what you mean about competing information. It’s so hard to know what to believe, let alone to balance all the pros and cons.
@ Akemi, I first found her from your tweet. Maybe she’ll get me interested in nutrition, but we’ll see.
July 13th, 2009 at 9:12 pm
I am using JD book recommendation by Dr. Fuhrman and have been to a medical intuitive, homeopath to work on foods to take out of my diet…I am now 3 months into the program and exercising well too – I feel so much better than I have for the past several years – I always listen to my body but having my hearing fine tuned and someone to talk to has made it even better…
Evita does have just super ideas to share on her blog.
Thank you for this reminder – good post
July 13th, 2009 at 9:47 pm
@ Patricia, it sounds like that program is working out really well. A change in diet and exercise can definitely have a profound impact.
July 18th, 2009 at 6:08 pm
Hi Hunter,
I am so glad you found that article helpful, and thank you for all the kind words.
You said it all when you stated “I think it comes down to seeking an easy solution.”
We really do, in our times of “fast” and convenience”, people want that so badly. I wouldn’t be surprised if half of North America (or more) stopped eating food tomorrow, if scientists found an all-in-one pill. I think we have really lost being in touch with nature, our bodies and proper nutrition.
People really make it seem like it is “hard to know what to eat” – hmmm… our earlier ancestors seemed to have no problem, and they say we are the smarter generations. Just eat what nature gives us – hopefully plant based
and stop the fussing. But that would be too simple I guess 
Oh and about the J. Fuhrman book “Eat to Live” – it is fantastic indeed and I highly recommend it to anyone who is looking at how to make health and eating synonymous.
Anyhow thanks again! And thank you to Akemi and Patricia for the kind words as well. And yes Akemi, more personal development is coming up, as soon as I come back from vacation.
July 19th, 2009 at 7:22 pm
Exercise everyday and eat healthy foods with some junk food at the end of the week rewarding yourself for working out during the week. It’s as simple as that. This is my routine (of course there’s some scheduling).
Most importantly, you have to commit to be healthy. Stop wishing for miracles and take control of your body and your mind.
July 19th, 2009 at 8:58 pm
@ Evita, I guess it’s hard to know what to eat only because we’re so used to all the heavily processed food that has taken the place of natural food. Good point, our ancestors had to problem figuring it out! Thanks for writing that article.
@ John, the commitment is the hardest part, but I agree – if you take care of that, the rest falls into place.
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