What we really need to become more cognizant of is the middle of the road.

Many live in a black and white world moving rapidly from one extreme to the other. Afraid to touch on the gray areas of life the in-between the wisdom in the body rather than from an outside source.

I believe we would be doing them a service to help them remember the Buddhas teachings of the middle way.

Slowing down and hearing the body’s needs and cues is all available if we can just take the time to listen. This of course is different for each of us, the expert advice lies within.

Mahalo Leo for this wonderful post and opportunity for so many to comment!

Michael Pollan said, ” We haven’t had a strong food culture historically, telling us how to eat, so we’re particularly vulnerable to marketing messages. When Taco Bell comes along and is trying to proselytize a fourth American meal every day, the French and Italians just laugh. But Americans are like, ‘Yeah, maybe I should have another meal at 11 o’clock at night.”

It’s certainly true that Americans haven’t had one single strong food culture. We had many. While the food was different, many of the habits associated with food and eating were the same from culture to culture. I think those habits kept people from developing some of the bad habits now associated with food.

Pollan has also said that our relationship with food has changed more in the last 50 years than in the previous 10,000 years. Not only has the food industry’s influence increased significantly over the last 50 years, the importance of feeding one’s family a home-cooked meal has been devalued.

Something else has changed over the last 50 years; the role of women. It used to be that the mothers and grandmothers taught us not only how to cook, but how and what to eat and when to do it. They were the ones who kept and passed on the traditions associated with food. But we’ve been taught that homemaking and all it includes is drudgery and we have more important things to do with our lives. While I’m not going to argue women’s roles, heaven knows I’ve struggled with it enough myself, what could be more important than feeding and caring for one’s children/family?

Beyond that, the food industry has done something previously unheard of: it aimed marketing at children. In many ways, it gave children more power in the decisions made about food. We’re seeing the first generation of children who are not expected to live longer than their parents and adult-onset diabetes (Type 2 diabetes) in children who have yet to reach double digits in their ages.

All of this, and more, combined to give us a food culture of cheap, unhealthy food and habits that aren’t conducive to health and wellness. Interestingly, where there’s a strong, home-based food culture, many of these problems with food don’t seem to exist or exist to a much lesser degree. The fewer “experts” there are to tell people how and what to eat, the better they seem to eat. Food isn’t healthy or “un”, it’s food. It’s not demonized. Yes, it’s to sustain and nourish, but it’s also for pleasure, socialization and celebration.

“What you put in is what you get out”

I feel it hold true for everything whether it be family, work, study or food.

I applaud you for your article- we do need more discussions on food. And on a whole society needs to change its outlook on food. I have to agree with many of the comments here that say advertising relates food to happiness, fun, a good lifestyle- all that. For me watching alot of dvds and downloaded series without all the intermittent ads you get from the box has unconciously but drastically reduced my craving for highly processed foods.

When I really sit and be conscious of what I’m eating and when I’m hungry I find I naturally feel hungrier in the afternoons but after 6 at night I don’t feel the need to eat. Though it seems so much easier sometimes to do what the next girl is doing or skip meals or something crazy to lose weight or look a certain way I know that if I eat a wholegrain breakfast, lots of veggies, lean protein and drink milk or have soy for calcium and stay hydrated I’m healthier in my mind and my body in the long run.

I slowly phased out eating the highly processed carbs over 6 months. It was really difficult and I found them really addictive. I get alot of comments like that run along the lines of- you’re going to die, it’s unnatural. But how ‘natural’ is all that junk we force into our bodies? Sometimes I would eat things like cake and pile my plate like everyone else just to fit in which makes me think how skewed that really is. I did abuse food- I ate when I was bored, tired, sad, angry, happy. How crazy is that?

It’s worthwhile to be informed about what’s going into us.
Food should nourish you. That’s what it is- nourishment.