I'm torn when I see stuff like this. I think he is partly right and partly entirely wrong. My analogy is like when there's a war going on and some hippy says "We should all stop fighting and live in harmony." Yes, we should all stop fighting, but it's simplistic to just say we should all live in harmony. How?
Here are some flags from that video. Using the phrase "real food." You hear that one a lot. It's a way of defining as bad anything you don't like. Any food is real food. Period.
The talk about "chemicals and hormones and pesticides." First, EVERYTHING is chemicals. Next, "natural" food has all manner of hormones and pesticides in them. Animals have hormones in them naturally. Plants develop pesticides as a means of defense against pests and when doing so they don't test themselves to make sure the pesticides they're developing aren't harmful to humans.
This is all leading up to a "Nature is God" religion type thing. He actually invokes God near the end, saying if God made it then eat and if humans made it then don't. In the slide they put on the screen at one point it takes about eating being "a way of life." Groovy, baby. If we can just all live in harmony there will be no war so let's just mellow out together.
Mellowing out together is a good thing. And eating the foods that doctor proposes is good too. But that doesn't mean it's The Way. Processed foods aren't necessarily bad per se but instead it's just that most processed foods they currently make aren't healthy. Processing is just applying technology to food. Why would that magically always be bad when applying technology is so beneficial on other aspects of life?
Yes, people should eat more like that doctor says but the problem is that eating that way costs more time and money and we're never going to have more than a small minority of people that are going to want to have making and eating food be "a way of life," as they say in that video.
Cheap, fast food isn't bad in principle, it's just that it's often bad in practice. The solution isn't to have people eat expensive, slow food instead, rather it's to make cheap, fast food also be healthy. And that involves developing new technology and applying it to food. But for people at the Church of the Natural, applying technology to food is a sin.
Here are some flags from that video. Using the phrase "real food." You hear that one a lot. It's a way of defining as bad anything you don't like. Any food is real food. Period.
It's pretty easy. Real food = bananas, oranges, beans, legumes, kale, carrots, etc.
Not real food or manufactured food like substances = ice cream, Pepsi, Twinkies, donuts, cake, cookies etc.
Plants develop pesticides as a means of defense against pests and when doing so they don't test themselves to make sure the pesticides they're developing aren't harmful to humans.
We have evolved over thousands of generations eating plants. A lot of the plant pesticides have beneficial effects on our health.
Here is a sample:
Carotenoids
(such as beta-carotene, lycopene, lutein, zeaxanthin) Red, orange and green fruits and vegetables including broccoli, carrots, cooked tomatoes, leafy greens, sweet potatoes, winter squash, apricots, cantaloupe, oranges and watermelon May inhibit cancer cell growth, work as antioxidants and improve immune response
Flavonoids
(such as anthocyanins and quercetin) Apples, citrus fruits, onions, soybeans and soy products (tofu, soy milk, edamame, etc.), coffee and tea May inhibit inflammation and tumor growth; may aid immunity and boost production of detoxifying enzymes in the body
Indoles and Glucosinolates
(sulforaphane) Cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cabbage, collard greens, kale, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts) May induce detoxification of carcinogens, limit production of cancer-related hormones, block carcinogens and prevent tumor growth
Inositol
(phytic acid) Bran from corn, oats, rice, rye and wheat, nuts, soybeans and soy products (tofu, soy milk, edamame, etc.) May retard cell growth and work as antioxidant
Isoflavones
(daidzein and genistein) Soybeans and soy products (tofu, soy milk, edamame, etc.) May inhibit tumor growth, limit production of cancer-related hormones and generally work as antioxidant
Isothiocyanates Cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cabbage, collard greens, kale, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts) May induce detoxification of carcinogens, block tumor growth and work as antioxidants
Polyphenols
(such as ellagic acid and resveratrol) Green tea, grapes, wine, berries, citrus fruits, apples, whole grains and peanuts May prevent cancer formation, prevent inflammation and work as antioxidants
Terpenes
(such as perillyl alcohol, limonene, carnosol) Cherries, citrus fruit peel, rosemary May protect cells from becoming cancerous, slow cancer cell growth, strengthen immune function, limit production of cancer-related hormones, fight viruses, work as antioxidants
Mellowing out together is a good thing. And eating the foods that doctor proposes is good too. But that doesn't mean it's The Way. Processed foods aren't necessarily bad per se but instead it's just that most processed foods they currently make aren't healthy.
Um yeah, so don't eat them. That's the whole point.
Processing is just applying technology to food. Why would that magically always be bad when applying technology is so beneficial on other aspects of life?
Why don't we just eat the food as is? What else do you need to do a carrot? We have been eating them just fine for eons.
Yes, people should eat more like that doctor says but the problem is that eating that way costs more time and money a
Getting sick and putting yourself into the US healthcare system costs and incredible amount of time.
Beans, legumes and most vegetables are the cheapest foods you can buy.
