Nutrition and Health

I was thinking about nutrition, and health, while I was eating breakfast this morning. It led to some thoughts.

Who do you go to for health? Your doctor? Which one? The one that pushes a special diet? The one that prescribes all the new medications? The one told you to get the Covid vaccine? You have to choose, but which one is best?

What about nutrition? Which diet is best? The Mediterranean diet? The Atkins diet? The diet that is included with the nutrition drink? The fasting diet? The vegan diet? You have to choose, and you have friends that swear by one, or the other, but regardless of either, your realize some are too expensive, or you can't stand the foods on the diet, or the supplemental powder you're supposed to drink has a texture that reminds you of powdered sheetrock. 

What about scientists? They tell you some foods are good for you, until they're not, and then they're good again, but you can't have coffee, or tea, unless they're now considered beneficial for your mental acuity, or digestion, or blood sugar, or decreases the effects of aging. Vitamins are shown to be beneficial, or not, since too much of one can lead to problems, and some interfere with the medications that scientists demand are necessary to prevent high cholesterol, or hypertension, or mental health, or whatever the initials mean on commercials that tell you to ask you doctor about, but you have no idea what they're supposed to treat. 

It's said that some of the fresh fruits, and vegetables, you buy in the grocery store lack the benefits of ripened foods because they're harvested too soon to guarantee they'll be able to be shipped, and have a pleasing look in the store. That, and to enhance color, chemical, or gases are used for a pleasing result. Some might have pesticide residue, or is covered with a thin polymer to decrease exposure to gases that cause browning. So, buy the frozen stuff is recommended, because it has more of the nutrients, but keep in mind freezing can degrade the nutritional value. 

Remember, the oils you eat may have been initially designed as industrial lubricants, but even the best of oils, like avocado, or olive, can be ruined by cooking at too high of a heat. Butter is bad, or not, but may be. Seed oils are deadly, or are they?

Beef isn't good for you, or not. The same for pork. Chicken is good, but may be tainted with steroids, or antibiotics. Fish is good, but not if cooked at too high of a temperature. You can eat it raw, or not, and laws require it to be frozen to kill parasites, or treated for the same reason, and in some circumstances, it can kill you. 

Alcohol is bad, unless it's a certain wine in small quantities, unless a new study reveals this is false. Hard liquor is deadly, or not, if in moderation.

One report I once read (No, I don't have a link, and I'm too lazy to look it up) stated obesity is as bad, or may be worse, than an unhealthy diet, or smoking. Is this true? Ask a scientist, or a doctor, or a friend, or even better: look it up on the internet. There will you will find it's bad for you, unless you're older, and carrying a little extra weight can help with long term illnesses that can deplete necessary fat for survival. GLP1's are solving the problem of obesity, but the long term effects may include damage to the liver or the pancreas. That, and may cause permanent changes to digestion.

So, what can one do? I don't know, but do know my grandfather ate some type of meat at every meal, fried, or not. He ate much of what came from his garden, smoked cigarettes, cigars, and smoked a pipe. It depended on the moment. He'd take a nip of bourbon in the morning, and walked many miles on a golf course while selling real estate and insurance. He lived until he was 98 years old. He was never overweight, and he never worried about anything he couldn't do anything about. Was his lifestyle the secret of longevity and good health? I don't know, but I do know I miss him, and would listen to any advice he had to offer, while we shared an afternoon while drinking a beer. Oh. I forgot to mention he drank beer too. We'd bring some when we went fishing.