![\"\"](\"http:\/\/theguycancook.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/02\/3709445388_710cdffbe5_z-e1330101784172.jpeg\" "\\"Bookshelf\\"")
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I kinda-really hate words like \u201chealthy\u201d and \u201cunhealthy.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the one hand, we all have an intuitive understanding of what these words mean, but when we try to define it in a way that allows us to take action on it, things seem to go terribly wrong.<\/p>\n
Exhibit A can be found in just about every \u201c7 Unhealthy Foods You Shouldn\u2019t Be Eating\u201d story you\u2019re likely to run across in most major media outlets.<\/p>\n
While these headlines tend to attract readers (and thus advertiser\u2019s money), it usually glosses over the fact that their definitions of \u201chealthy\u201d and \u201cunhealthy\u201d are based on an outdated paradigm that was disproved long ago.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s look at an example, shall we?<\/p>\n
Recently, the Physician\u2019s Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) released their annual list of the unhealthiest cookbooks<\/a> of the past year.<\/p>\n Some of the books included are The Cook\u2019s Illustrated Cookbook<\/em>, by the venerated foodie magazine, and Jamie Oliver\u2019s Meals in Minutes<\/em>, by the same guy who\u2019s on a mission to get children worldwide eating healthy.<\/p>\n How could it be? These purveyors of fresh, unprocessed foods are being publicly shamed? Oh, the horror!<\/p>\n But wait\u2026 let\u2019s drill down a bit here. Why are they declaring these books to be so unhealthy in the first place?<\/p>\n What kind of standard could they possibly be measuring these books with?<\/em><\/p>\n For all intents and purposes, the words \u201chealthy\u201d and \u201cunhealthy\u201d were defined decades ago by the U.S. Government and have changed very little since.<\/p>\n To break it down, healthy foods are:<\/p>\n That\u2019s it.<\/em><\/p>\n You could theoretically walk into a laboratory and artificially synthesize a product that meets these specifications and slap a \u201chealthy\u201d sticker on the box and make millions.<\/p>\n \u2026er, wait a second, food companies are already doing that.<\/p>\n What\u2019s surprising is how little most people question the validity of this belief set.<\/p>\n Observations of healthy societies, scientific studies, and personal experiences have long been at odds with these guidelines, yet they still live on in most people\u2019s minds as defining a \u201chealthy diet.\u201d<\/p>\n How could a group with a name as authoritative as the Physician\u2019s Committee for Responsible Medicine fall for this rookie mistake?<\/p>\n Just makes ya feel all warm and fuzzy and safe.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s take a look at who\u2019s involved with the PCRM, shall we?<\/p>\n It was started in 1985 by Dr. Neal Barnard, the author of many scientific papers and popular books advocating a vegan diet. He now regularly writes for PETA\u2019s magazine Animal Times<\/em>.<\/p>\n Their advisory board includes T. Colin Campbell (author of The China Study<\/em><\/a>), Caldwell Esselstyn (whose writings helped persuade President Clinton to give up meat and all animal products), and John McDougall, who switched to a vegan diet after suffering a stroke at the age of 18.<\/p>\n Hell, even their director of public affairs (Elizabeth Kucinich) is married to the famously vegan Congressman Dennis Kucinich.<\/p>\nThe Definition of \u201cHealthy\u201d and \u201cUnhealthy\u201d Foods<\/h2>\n
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The Propaganda Machine<\/h2>\n