We all tend to hang out with people from our own sub-cultures, whatever they are. We tend to see those groups of people as ‘normal’ and forget that not everyone thinks the way we do. The people I identify with, here on the California coast, are usually very alternative health-minded, they eat right and go to Farmer’s Markets for their food. They are informed consumers of food. They think and do research before they make considered food choices. They really do believe that we are what we eat.
Well, obviously, she doesn’t know. This is the alternate reality of food. She has never seen the pictures of puny rats that are born to mothers who were fed Monsanto’s GMO soybeans. She has never read all the books on sugar and sugar substitutes and what they are doing to America’s health. She doesn’t connect the constant ill health of her children with allergies to everyday non-foods. She merrily believes everything the FDA and the government says. She usually believes that if something was bad for her family the government would stop it somehow.
Most of the processed foods that Americans eat all day long have addictive stuff in them – intentionally for the manufacturer’s profit. People don’t like it when you mess with their addictions. And, until they’ve done the research themselves, seen it with their own eyes, there is not much possibility of change.
It is such a huge step from the major food culture into the healthy eating subculture. When I tell women on the phone that they have to give up soft drinks entirely if they want healthy bones, it’s like taking candy from a child. When I tell my own mother that the reason for her suddenly dripping nose at the age of 87 is that her body is tired of dealing with dairy every day – her allergies are now showing. She says things like, “It’s my only pleasure.” Nope, that’s not true, or shouldn’t be. If all our pleasures come from our taste buds then our lives are pretty messed up.
Yes, eating healthy food does tend to restrict your dining out experiences and your enjoyment of parties. That is difficult. But isn’t your health and vitality and well-being worth it. Sadly, most people have to get pretty sick in order to change their way of eating. Osteoporosis is not such a bad disease really. If you have to have a wake-up call, then it seems to be the most subtle one. Anything that causes us to take that big step sideways into the subculture of healthy eating is a blessing.