Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Snow Day, another article against getting rid of grains

For the very first time in my life, I did NOT want my university to close due to snow. I was supposed to lecture today, and now that I can't, I am going to fall behind in my plans! But, oh well, such is life, I will just warn the kids that I might have to talk really fast to get in all the material for a day or two :)

The snow fell hard and is STILL falling hard. And Chris is not here (traveling for work), and our snowblower is HUGEMONGOUS. Like, insanely so. I don't know how to use it, and kind of don't want to... it's a monster to push around. So I went out at 8 AM and did the first round of shoveling. Exhausting. But, a girl's work is never done - and I got Koda out on a short walk. Not too many people had shoveled yet, but he was desperate to go, so I relented as I was already all geared up for the snow from shoveling.

Oh, and I weighed 122 today. So my little night out with the girls was easily mitigated by all my good behaviors before and after! More days of those same good, healthy choices ahead of me :)

So, here's this article:

The Smoke and Mirrors Behind Wheat Belly and Grain Brain

I don't like to pretend there are no critics of the way I eat (no grains, no dairy... focus on fruit/veg/nuts/lean meat). But I think this article is absurd.

It is claiming that these diets without grains are hurtful and that grains are one of the healthiest things we can eat. Well, we'll agree to disagree on that front. It is claiming that people who give up grains think they have carte blanche to eat "prime rib and cheddar cheese." Um, okay.

See, here's the difference: an unhealthy diet is an unhealthy diet, whether that diet includes grains or not. If you make bad food choices, you do. That's the bottom line. I was eating a healthy diet when I ate grains (and maintained good health for the most part aside from some inflammation) and I eat a VERY healthy diet off grains. In fact, a more healthy diet without grains because I've replaced all my grains (pasta, bread, rice, etc) with sweet potatoes, squashes, and tons of green veggies. I have NOT replaced my grains with more, more, MORE MOAR MOAR red meat and grease.

That's why, in the end, whatever you eat.... I think you should mostly eat vegetable matter :)

It is also assuming that people who don't eat grains eat a low carbohydrate diet.... um, I eat plenty of carbs (fruits and veggies have tons of carbs... and I eat a lot of starchy plant matter, like squash and bananas, etc).

They also claim that people who give up grains are ruining the earth by funding the meat industry. Maybe some people are. But if you are following a HEALTHY diet, you are not really replacing grains with more meat. You are filling in the gaps with most veggies, then fruits, and extra fats (avocados, coconut oils, etc). Perhaps I eat a touch more meat than I used to, but not by much.

I also am a proponent of local, grass-fed, humanely raised meats. We buy from local farmers, the local co-op, and make the best choices possible at the grocery store. We eat LESS meat to be able to afford BETTER, safer, healthier meat.

So... I shared because, why not? Why pretend no one has a problem with my diet? But I also think it's garbage.

Bad science, bad logic all over the place.

Alright... off to eat and get to work at home on this snow day!!

Namaste <3

4 comments:

  1. Where do I start on that article? Of course it was no surprise to see it was from Dr McDougall. I'm not going to say his way is wrong - heck if he has success good luck to him but I get so upset when I read over and over that paleo or primal people eat loads of meat! I eat less meat than before and a shit load more vegetables. Heck I think your average paleo/primal eater eats more vegetables than a vegetarian.

    I'm sticking to what I believe works and you can't convince me that lots of starch is going to help my pre-diabetes. Thanks for sharing the link, even if it did make my blood pressure go up reading it!!

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  2. Did not read link. That stuff makes me crazy.

    Loved what you wrote.

    There are people who give up grains and then fry everything in bacon grease. And it is impossible to get them to understand.

    And they give an incorrect perception to those trying (usually unsuccessfully) to have everything in moderation work.

    The other factor is how much weight one wants to lose. The output is equal to the input. Those of us who have it all off (mid to lower range of normal BMI) have made the most changes to what society believes is a "normal" food plan.

    There are a lot of vegetarians out there who eat very few veggies and a lot of processed.

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  3. Snow can be wonderful but also not ! We have too much rain in some parts of the UK at the moment which is causing problems. The trouble with nature is .... what can we do? Stay as safe and warm as possible and eat healthily.

    All the best Jan

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  4. This article is ridiculous, based on a biased view of someone who obviously doesn't want to remove sandwiches from their diet. I agree that an unhealthy diet is an unhealthy diet regardless of what's making it unhealthy. bah!

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