keith’s new self

Even though I buy groceries from an organic food store, my diet is quite high in sugar and fat. Typically my roomies and I have cheese, yogurt, sweetened cereal, sweetened soy milk, granola, organic root beer, waffles, potato chips, and other rich food in high supply, while our stock of fresh veggies is small, and not used as often. Part of the reason for this is that healthier food consisting of cooked raw vegetables, legumes, whole grains, etc usually takes longer to make. Or at least that’s what we tell ourselves. I often come home from work and have a bowl of granola or a grilled cheese sandwich for dinner. Not the worst possible thing I guess, but the behaviour is based in a feeling of lack of time, and the reality is that I’m neglecting my bodily health for a quick hunger-killing snack. Yet somehow it feels good to look at the ingredients in a junky treat, and find that well known health-ravaging carbs, white sugar and glucose-fructose, have been replaced by the friendlier-sounding evaporated cane juice, concentrated grape juice, or my favorite, high-fructose corn syrup.

A related tidbit: I’ve had former vegans tell me that they never ate so unhealthily as when they were vegan. They could justify eating a whole box of cookies because it contained no animal products. These days, the vegan dictum of avoiding animal products seems morally insufficient, as awareness raises about the impact of imported foods on the environment and oppressive trade practices with poorer countries. No animals may have been killed or abused (directly anyway) to get that box of Oreos to your house, but what other environmental and social damage occurred? Buying local and fair trade have become the new moral imperatives of grocery shopping.

Anyhoo - as we speak I’m cooking up some whole grain rice for breakfast. I want to try edging back into whole foods again.
tags: ecology, food, health, organic, veganism, vegetarianism

posted: 7:18 am