It was appropriate, then, that I found the following quotation from Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) in John A. McDougall, M.D.'s 1985 book about diet and lifestyle, McDougall's Medicine: A Challenging Second Opinion:
Whenever a new discovery is reported to the Scientific world, they say first, "It is probably not true."McDougall's "new discovery," which he was disappointed hadn't been immediately accepted as certainly true and important (and to salve which disappointment he seems to have been in need of Montaigne's help), was that
Thereafter, when the truth of the new proposition has been demonstrated beyond question, they say, "Yes, it may be true, but it is not important."
Finally, when sufficient time has elapsed to fully evidence its importance, they say, "Yes, surely it is important, but it is no longer new."
the diet and lifestyle which best supports your natural tendencies to heal and stay healthy...is based around proper foods, moderate exercise, adequate sunshine, pure air and water, and surroundings comfortable to your psychological well-being.This dawning calls on me to revise my eating choices, as my theological dawning called on me to amend what I believed about God.
The primary component, the diet, is centered around a variety of starchy plant foods such as rice, potatoes, and pastas with the addition of fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables. Animal-derived foods and plant products that are refined or otherwise processed are not health-supporting....[p. 307, from "A Brief Summary of the McDougall Plan"]1
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- It is interesting to note that Dr. McDougall's views on health are compatible with those of Dr. Nortin M. Hadler, author of (for example) Worried Sick: A Prescription for Health in an Overtreated America, and that Dr. Hadler is scheduled to be at Dr. McDougall's Advanced Study Weekend, February 19-21, in Santa Rosa, California.
Santa Rosa is just fifteen miles from where I went to elementary school and was taught what I should eat and believe.
you might enjoy "in defence of food" by Michael Pollan.
ReplyDelete"'Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.'
"That's the advice journalist and author Michael Pollan offers in his new book, In Defense of Food.
'That's it. That is the short answer to the supposedly incredibly complicated and confusing question of what we humans should eat in order to be maximally healthy,' Pollan tells Steve Inskeep"
read more http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=17725932
this was on NPR on your birthday last year
ReplyDelete"Have that burger, says author Michael Pollan, and honor the importance of pleasure in food. The author slices through the nutri-hype with his latest book, In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto. "See if you can find a grass-fed burger," he advises. "It tastes better, and it's better for you, and it's better for the animal."
Pollan argues that our culture has an unhealthy obsession with eating right. "I'm trying to get people to relax about it a little," he says.
There are many reasons to make choices about what you eat beyond attempting to live longer, he argues. Among them is taking part in family and cultural rituals. The more rigid you become about your diet, the harder it is to eat what everyone around you is having. So eat unprocessed food, with an emphasis on plants, and don't eat too much. Don't eat anything your great-grandmother wouldn't recognize as food. Stay on the perimeter of a supermarket, where the meat, fish, produce and dairy products reside. The packaged goods — from sodas to sugary cereals — lurk in the middle.
Since he became a marquee name in the "slow food" movement with his 2006 book Omnivore's Dilemma, Pollan says he has noticed that he gets fewer invitations for supper — perhaps because people worry about what to serve him. But Pollan believes in eating what he's served. And he admits to having a couple of guilty pleasures, chief among them Cracker Jack and corn chips."
Thank you much, Pineapple Girl. Sage advice, and of course I mostly follow it when it comes to living with your mother <smile>, except that sometimes I eat more than I "should" or really want to in order to eat as much as she tells me I should. (Not often, though; I don't want that to be blown out of proportion.) And I'd really like to eat less (and less often) of animal products than she recommends.
ReplyDeleteEating more or less vegan for several days (while she's away) has been very satisfying. I love Quinoa, for example. I prepared some yesterday with sliced almonds and dried cranberries, and was careful not to overstuff myself. It was delicious, and I felt great.
I really think that Dr. McDougall (for example) is right to warn us against the deleterious effects on our health of eating animal products (and Pollan is right to advise us to "eat mostly plants"), and I'd simply like to enjoy the benefits of following their advice. For me, it's not a matter of extending my life by a few months, but, hopefully, of feeling better in terms of my arthritis, my allergies, my digestive system, my energy.
As you (and your mother) know, I have for a long time not particularly enjoyed red meat. I admit, however, that I don't know how eliminating fish and fowl would go down with my body's wants. Or eliminating other animal products (such as eggs, milk, yogurt, cheese). I imagine that I'd want, and would continue, to include these occasionally. I've already come to eat eggs much, much less often than I used to. And I know that I could easily give up cheese sandwiches. (I could give my boss's annual gift of a small wheel of cheese to a neighbor—or simply let him know that I'd prefer not to receive cheese....) I'd probably want to continue to sprinkle grated parmesan on my spaghetti sauce, although I might find "vegan ways" to eat spaghetti that would appeal to me as much or more.
And, for a long time, I've been philosophically opposed to eating the flesh of animals, but I don't want to get into that here or now.
By the way, I think that Michael Pollan preceded Dr. Hadler as a guest at a McDougall Advanced Study Week, but it's hard to verify that from McDougall's website. I do find, though (when I google the site), many mentions of Pollan on "Dr. McDougall's Online Discussion Board."
Of course, your mother is in no way opposed to eating plants. She even admonished me to "eat my vegetables" while she was away. But, when she read this post, she admonished me to drink my milk and eat my yogurt as well! <smile>
Morris, I'd consider replacing the rice, potatoes, and pasta with oats and whole grain products when possible. Actually, I pretty much have removed them from my diet altogether except for an occasional serving. Vegetables and fruit should always be a primary component of one's diet.
ReplyDeleteAlso, if you haven't yet visited Blue Zones, here's the link:
www.bluezones.com
Bettina