Why would you listen to me? You have been eating your way for decades and you know what you like. You have access to a computer and can Google information; read different blogs and studies concluding that what you like to eat, what you have been eating, is perfectly fine for you. There’s more than enough “experts” saying that meat, dairy, seafood, etc, are all necessary parts of a healthy diet, for a multitude of reasons. Essentially, everything that I state, that I stand for, as far as a whole foods plant based (WFPB) diet is concerned has contradictions backed by plenty of evidence. So, I ask you again, why would you listen to me?
Well, first thing’s first; I’ve been on the other side. I used to eat the cultural standard for “healthy”. A typical meal consisted of a nice sized chunk of animal flesh, a side of veggies, and a bit of carbs. I come from the land of eating “that way”. I know what it’s like. I have experience in that.
I also have experience in feeling like a bag of shit. Eating the way I did, I wound up with high cholesterol, and chronic fatigue. Being put on Crestor when you’re 24 is anything but normal. Look, I didn’t have high cholesterol because my body was deficient in statins. I didn’t need a nap every afternoon, dragging ass all day long, for any logical reason that I could think of at the time. Again, I’ve been there; taking medication everyday to keep my body…….healthy.
Oh, and while I’m on the topic – get your blood tested, too! How are you ever going to know what your different levels are if you don’t check them regularly (once a year). Eat all the bullshit you want and think you’re fine because you think you feel fine – then go get a blood test and find out the true extent of the damage you’re doing.
But more than having lived a life on the other side of the dietary spectrum, I have spent the better part of a decade pushing back on all the damage I did to myself; eating WFPB has moved my health back to where it’s supposed to me. Over the last 8 years, I’ve picked up a few tidbits of knowledge along the way. Knowledge about knowledge; I’ll explain:
Like I mentioned earlier, there are studies proving, or disproving, just about everything. You can believe that eggs are healthy and good for you and find a study that proves that. Conversely, you can think eggs are shit, and find a study concluding that eggs are awful for you (in fact, the are). The devil is in the details, as per usual. First off, look who funded the study – that’s the quickest method to find out if the study holds any water at all. If the study is titled, for example, “The Positive Effects of Beef on Brain Function” and concludes that eating beef frequently leads to improved brain health, but is funded by the Texas Cattle Feeders Association, well…you can bet your balls that the findings have been cherry-picked to support their narrative. And in all fairness, if a study about a plant’s benefits on the human body is funded by any privatized group the would benefit from an increase in vegetable/fruit/etc sales, you’d have to throw that study out also. So look and see who paid for the study, first. For better or worse, money speaks volumes
If all that checks out, look and see who the actual individuals are who conducted the study. A simple Google search can reveal some pretty interesting information. For example, I’ve seen studies whose funding seemed legit and when I googled the names of the researchers, found that several have, or have had, ties to specific industries; getting kickbacks and pushing a narrative.
Say the individuals seem legit, and the funding looks to be unbiased – what do you do? Well, you read the damn study. Some of them are super long, using highly technical words and processes that you’ll have to look up to understand, taking up your precious time to get through. But, sometimes the way results are gathered is blatantly honest and straight forward and you can say to yourself, “well, these findings are garbage because of the way the data was collected!”. Check to make sure there are control groups, peer reviews, etc etc etc. By doing all this, you’ll come to notice that the studies advocating a WFPB diet’s health effects are vastly more legit than those pushing animal products for health.
So, basically, try it all out. Eat everything you want and see how you feel; from there you can begin removing food items. Get your blood tested. Congruently, read the research because you may be eating nothing but meat and feel great, but not realizing what the long term health implications are (harmful hormone levels, increased body inflammation, lack of blood flow to the brain, and more). It’s a lot of work. It’s taken me 8 years of continuing my education through reading new research that is constantly coming out. Not to mention each time you read a new study, you’ll have to go back and see who funded it and conducted it. Do the work and listen to the truths you discover. Listen to yourself.
Or, you could listen to me.
