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Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Calorie Craze
Welcome to my first blog post!!! So this morning I was watching the Today Show, which I do when able, and they brought on a nutritionist to compare the calories in various foods. She preceded to choose the bacon bits over the sunflower seeds and the processed meat and the died yellow cheese to the tofu. The problem I have is that sunflower seeds are full of all sorts of nutrients and great fats and the fried bacon pieces that have been processed to last on the shelf for a year that clog your arteries and everything else get the green light. Same with chemical filled deli meats and the funky bright yellow cheese. Now I know tofu doesn't always win in the flavor department but to be shunned for being high in calories next to the alternative is pretty lame. Am I crazy.....????
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No you are not crazy. Why Americans see "calories" as a bad thing is just ignorant. Calories are another word for energy. So the more calories something has, the more energy. Of course, the QUALITY of the energy also has to be taken into account. For instance, a snickers bar is high in calories, but also high in saturated fat, sugar, and cholesterol. So you might want to choose a more healthy snack, like a raw spinach salad with half a roasted chicken breast, 1 boiled egg, vinaigrette, raw carrots, tomato, and bell pepper, would come near the caloric intake of a snickers bar, but with FAR more nutritional value, low saturated fat, low cholesterol, and as you can imagine, a larger amount of food. So as much as I am a fan of keeping track of your daily intake of calories (because in the end you will only lose or maintain a healthy weight by making sure you spend more than you take in daily) I think it is equally important to bring QUALITY calories into your body. Honestly, it sounds like that lady was trying make unhealthy people feel better about their bad food choices.
ReplyDeleteI am in complete agreement with you Louisa. I am very into nutrition and read a lot of great books about it, websites, etc. There is a book I read called the St. Tropez Diet and in the title the word "diet" refers more to a way of life and attitude about eating and nutrition. It is all about Mediterranean food and why people in that part of the world are so much healthier... It's mostly due to the fact that everything they eat is all natural from the fish they catch, to the olive oil they use, to the fresh cheeses they make. Now of course cheeses and olive oil have a lot of calories, but they are so much better for you than the processed ANYTHING that we put in our bodies!
ReplyDeleteThanks Kellie! Ya it should be a way of life to eat mindfully. The med diet is great for the that part of the world but its not always accessible to everyone. Everyone region and climate has their own modification. It basically comes down to whole natural foods from whatever and where ever is available. Ya olive oil and cheese is heavy on calories but Im with ya on that its way better than anything in a bag! Love some good cheese!
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