Why we need to think about food differently

BMI’s and bikini bodies. The New Year’s resolutions of gym and no carbs. And our constant war with the scale. All of these things suggest to me that there’s something inherently wrong with the way our society relates to food. Because food should never be and should never have been a 28-day diet, a meal plan or a way to fit into those jeans. When food became a means to an end we started a war and for many people, it has resulted in a life of fighting with our bodies and with food.

Of course, food and weight are intrinsically linked. And a healthy weight will always be an essential component of health. The countless articles linking obesity to an increased risk for developing diabetes, high blood pressure and cancer, to name only a few, are a testament to that. We cannot disregard the link between obesity, nutrition and disease. That’s not my proposal at all. My hope is that weight isn’t the only reason we restrict or include foods in our diet. But rather because we’ve gained an understanding of health and how our meals can contribute to that.

Fad diets and the ‘magic pill’ diets often cause weight loss at the expense of health; as they restrict your intake of certain nutrients and sometimes even entire food groups. Constant weight fluctuations from dieting can cause gallstones later in life. A women’s body starts storing nutrients for pregnancy long before you plan for it and so your diet can affect your ability to conceive. Our health becomes the collateral damage on our pursuit of the happiness we think a drop on the scale can provide.

I hope that our reasons for eating will change. From avoiding foods because we’re scared of whether they’ll end up on our hips or thighs to including foods because we know they boost our brain function, immunity and energy levels. That we’ll start to see how foods contribute to our health and not just our weight. That meals are no longer measured by calorie

s but by how it’s building our bones, our brains and our health. Vegetables wouldn’t be the food that we can eat without a guilt trip but the foods abundant in anti-oxidants and wholegrain carbohydrates would be seen as a source of fibre reducing our risk of colon cancer. Let’s stop the war on weight and start the journey to health.