Richard Tardif
French author of poetry and memoirs La Rochefoucauld once said, “To eat is a necessity, but to eat intelligently is an art,” and so in perpetuity the seventeenth century moralist re-united eating, a staple of common peasant bread and rotting meat, with overall health, not so good given that century’s miserable life expectancy of 35-years.
This reset mankind on a journey of preservation and new hope, but today hope is a confused banter between losing weight with Carbohydrates, fats and proteins, I Quit Sugar, the Fat Revolution, Fitness Pal, Smart Cookies; and how to do it and keep it off, Biggest Loser, Cross-Fit, weight-lifting, and maxed out, beyond the limit cardio.
Less is written about François VI, Duc de La Rochefoucauld than many other seventeenth century authors and moralists, and perhaps this once Prince de Marcillac and his philosophy is getting more attention in the twenty-first century as humankind struggles with health issues, illness and disease, much of it preventable with proper nutrition.
It’s not that eating and our health was considered two separate units.
In 400 B.C., Hippocrates, considered the “Father of Medicine” said to his students, “Let thy food be thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food”. Today’s Multi-Level-Marketing companies selling designer food, untested health and wellness products use his famous quote as inspiration. He also said, “A wise man should consider that health is the greatest of human blessings”.
Scientist and artist Leonardo da Vinci in the 1500s compared the process of metabolism in the body to the burning of a candle, and the man who prevented scurvy by handing out limes, Dr. James Lind, a physician in the British Navy, in 1747 was also breaking news in Nutrition. Food has long been considered medicine but its always breaking news these days.
Eat wholesome, eat more often during the day and eat less is today’s mantra, and indeed, eating properly can be considered an art form, and its not news. Today’s food is sugar filled, processed, fatty, and tasty, fast and delivered, in powdered form, and spiked with “food like” tasting chemicals, and that’s also not news!
Breaking news in nutrition is often collected up in web-sponsored advertising that grabs reader’s attention, or should I say obsessions? The 15 best weight loss diets at a glance! Ten tips to healthy eating. The 25 best diet tricks known to man. The best weight loss drink to help you lose 30 pounds in 30 days! Experts. Certified trainers. Celebrity trainers. The 10 worse diets.
It seems today everyone is an expert. Breaking news is everyday. It’s an art; sort of speak, to fool us into believing that the latest news is the best news. New and improved. Best it’s ever going to be. Don’t miss out. Now you can eat and not feel the guilt. What guilt?
This column attempts to make some sense of it all and offer choices. In the least, it will motivate you to think twice about the newest and latest breakthroughs. One thing is certain; historically, the connection between our food and our health has always been noted. What is different today is that this connection is becoming complicated, and in so many cases, just false.
