The Moderation Myth

Most people have a general idea what foods are good for them to promote health and fitness and to prevent diseases, and what foods are not good for them.

There is no question in anyone’s mind that fresh whole fruits and vegetables and whole grains and beans are the best foods for the lifelong health and the highest level of fitness and energy.

It is also common knowledge that many well-loved foods and certain substances in foods are not good for you, such as junk foods, junk drinks, coffee, fast foods, fried foods, salt, processed foods, white sugar and white flour products, oils and fats, and cholesterol.

With all the information available about the necessity for and dangers of meat of all kinds, along with cheese, milk, and dairy products, to human health and fitness, one can’t help but take a closer look at these foods with which we were all raised.

Yet, in spite of knowing what foods are good for them and what foods are not good for them, Americans continue to load up their plates and their daily diets with the “bad for you” foods and eat only limited portions of whole fruits, whole vegetables, whole grains and legumes.

Why do they continue to eat those very foods that they know can cause sickness and disease and the downward spiral of their bodies and their health?

There are layers of reasons why people eat what they eat, but one of them is because they have been told since they were in grade school that they can eat whatever they want as long as they eat in moderation.

Does that sound like familiar thinking?

This is the “moderation myth.” We have been told that if we eat foods in moderation then we can eat whatever we like.

However, if we just look around at all the people that are unfit, sick, and packing around too much weight, it is very evident that Americans do not know what moderation is, when it comes to many things, but especially when it comes to food.

We eat too much food and too much of the wrong foods.

The following statistics, stated in Dr. Joel Fuhrman’s book, Eat to Live, should, once and for all, dispel the “moderation myth” in this country:

· 51% of all the food that Americans eat comes in the form of refined and processed foods—the “bad for you” foods.
· 42% of our foods come in the form of meat and dairy products—the “not so good for you” foods.
· Only 7% of our foods are sourced from vegetables and fruits (the “good’ for you foods) and one-half of the vegetables come in the form of potatoes and a lot of those potatoes come in the form of French fries and potato chips.

These statistics show that most Americans are clueless what moderation means.

In fact, if we really want to be very honest about moderation, we may not have to look around or look at the statistics. We may be able to just look in the mirror to fully understand that moderation is a myth in this country. So beware of the “eat whatever you want as long as it is in moderation” trap.

Even if we truly did eat only a little salt, a little chocolate, a little sugar, a little oil, a little coffee, a little meat, a little cheese, a little white flour, a little junk, and a little fast food, all these so-called “littles” day after day, week after week, year after year, add up to huge consequences of premature, health-compromising conditions, debilitating and deadly diseases like cancer, heart disease, strokes, and diabetes, and ultimately to early death.

Are eating these foods and non-foods worth losing your health and your life? The choice is yours. You decide.

By Dr. Leslie Van Romer
Dr. Leslie Van Romer is a health motivational speaker, writer, and lifestyle coach. Visit http://www.DrLeslieVanRomer.com for more inspiration.
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