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Food Rules!

3.14.2008

Last night Ceej and I went to hear the food guru, Michael Pollan, speak at Abravanel Hall. It was truly enlightening.

He started off by talking a bit about our (the United State's) food ideology and nutritionism. I could go on and on. Really you should just buy his newest book, In Defense of Food. He explained that in the 70's our beloved government ceased to require the food industry to label "imitation" foods...so now the food industries can label something "sour cream" without there actually being any cream in it at all. Ah! He also enlightened us on the 70's low-fat diet craze that has really made us fatter! Read the book.

The whole night was great, great, great. Here's some rules he gave us for our next trip to the hostile grocery store:
1) buy only things that your great-grandmother would recognize as a food
2) buy things that actually have an expiration date and will perish
3) do not buy things that "promote health": such as "no trans fats", "added omega 3's"...we should be getting our nutrients (another buzz word he kept jabbing at) from whole foods, and the original source. We shouldn't have to eat foods with additives.

Pollan urged us all to "vote with our forks." We often wonder how the lower class could ever afford to eat fresh produce and whole foods. If we create a demand, then we'll drive the prices down. So do it!

AND, it made me question my "health" reasons for being a vegan. I still think most animals are treated cruelly, but if I could find some animals who were treated with respect and stewardship, I might partake!

7 comments:

Terrence and Kestlee said...

Ann Marie! I was so surprised to see your comment. It has been a long time!! I can't believe how long your hair is!! It looks great! I was actually thinking about you the other day when my mom told me that she ran into Lindsay Logan. I immediately thought of that funny 3 on 3 tournament that we played in so long ago. It's great to see that you are doing well!

holly jo said...

Amen to healthy, homemade, great-grandmother buying food. Fat free food freaks me right on out.

ali said...

I love that first bit of advice. So easy (and fun) to follow. I think I'm doing OK so far today: oatmeal, yogurt, strawberries, cottage cheese, and wheat thins. I hope the wheat thins are alright!

I knew you would go to this and that I could feed off your knowledge afterward. Thanks for that. :)

amy said...

wasn't that michael pollan spectacular? i really loved his book, too.

i wonder sometimes about how far the advantages of near-veganism go (health-wise) too and have thought about how, in another world, i might feel differently.

Aleena said...

I wish I could have gone. I think it is very important to be wise with the food we eat. I have long thought that if we had the medical technology that we have today with the diet of our ancestors we would live very long, active, wonderful lives.

Lane said...

I love Michael Pollan! Thanks for passing along the info. I felt enlightened but also a little daunted by his book. Your eating habits are an inspiration to me.

Lindsay said...

Dear Ann Marie -- I was vegetarian, vegan and raw... and have only in the past 9 months started eating omnivorously. Books that have changed my life on the subject?

The Vegetarian Myth, Lierre Keith
Nutrition & Physical Degeneration, Weston A. Price.