subject: Healthy Eating Why Barack Obama Is Like A Scone [print this page] Healthy Eating Why Barack Obama Is Like A Scone
Before I explain that, think about what has been going on here. Any election is about making a choice - in this case McCain or Obama, which does nothing to reflect the subtlety and richness of human experience, or how we would want that reflected in the electoral process and the choices we can make.
But that's how the human mind works, we put things into either/or categories. It has to be one candidate or the other. Once when my daughter was very small I was tucking her up in bed and I asked her if she was a pickle or a poppet. She had a think and said, "I'm a both", which was an honest and intriguing answer! But usually people aren't allowed to be "a both"; they have to be one thing or another.
This categorisation also works with food and leads to poor food choices. Many people classify foods in this either/or way and have a list of foods that are yuck and a list of foods that are yum. The yum list is usually, chocolates, sweets, fast food, and cakes. The yuck list is carrots and broccoli.
Some more sophisticated folks have a healthy list and a naughty list. Again, the naughty list is the cakes, fries and donuts while the healthy list is the broccoli and carrots. Secretly they may actually label these foods yuck and yum but won't admit to it.
This classification system does not allow for the subtleties and richness of food experience. It also severely reduces our food choices, for once we label something as yuck how likely are we to choose it?
So allow yourself to have broader, more generous more varied classifications for food.
So here is my list of rich food experiences:
* Yuck and I'll never eat it (probably most insects and turnips/swedes)
* A bit yuck but I'll eat it if it's prepared right (cabbage)
* Yuck once upon a time but now I like them (most vegetables)
* Yum - a long list including fruits, some veg and wild salmon, organic chicken and my husband's home made pesto sauce
* Yum but only for the first one or two bites (cakes and puddings)
