Where’s the Beef?

How have we, as a species, not yet come to a consensus about what to eat? 

Too many choices, perhaps. There was a long time in human history when you ate what you could find. That included what you were able to hunt or fish. Now selections overwhelm us and everybody is trying to tell us that theirs is the healthy one.

I’ve counted calories, weighed my food, and read labels until my eyes crossed. Everybody and their cousin has a diet story. Someone who doesn’t have an odd (or at odds) relationship with food seems like a freak! However, if I threw out all of my rules and just ate like a so-called normal person, in a few years they’d have to remove the roof of my home and lift me out with a crane.

Lately, I’m attempting to eat a Keto diet. Keep in mind that I never say never. I will eat popcorn and pasta again. But I’m giving this low-carb, high-fat plan a go to see what happens. I haven’t paid anyone for it or joined a club; info is everywhere. Apparently, your body learns to use body fat for fuel when you’re not feeding it carbs. It’s the first time in my life that I’m not having cravings – not a one. I’m also not bloated and uncomfortable, which is my usual state with wheat in my diet. I’m so over feeling deprived, and I won’t live on carrot and celery sticks for the rest of my life just to be thin.

Here is a comprehensive free guide to getting started with Keto from bodyketosis.com. It explains the science behind the body’s switch in and out of ketosis. My physician thinks keto (no longer than a six month stretch at a time) along with intermittent fasting, is a great way to lose weight and maintain good health. He also went into a long explanation about how we’ve been conditioned to believe that grains are good, despite evidence to the contrary.

Recently, I watched the 2017 documentary The Magic Pill. It’s about the health changes experienced by several groups of people eating a Keto diet. The results seem pie-in-the-sky unrealistic and over-the-top; EVERY diabetic in the trial went off insulin? I’m skeptical. But besides that, a lot of what was presented makes sense. Humans ate what was available; plants and animals. Products made with grains are mainly manufactured and not technically natural. (Despite what it says on the label!) The film has been widely criticized by vegans and some other health experts. Which takes me back to why we, collectively, haven’t figured out food yet.

Dr. Angelo Zizzo of Hamilton, with whom I hosted a radio show, once told me about how humans developed “meat-eating teeth” in order to devour meat. Local vegan, Jay Grant, who stars in the mini-TV-series Unlikely Vegan, told me the opposite. Vegans say we have plant-eating teeth not meant to tear at a steak.

So who’s right? I may be eating Keto but I’m not yet taking sides. I’m not sure what kind of teeth we have. Mine seem to do just as good a job on a filet mignon as they do on a leaf of kale. I’m happy to eat vegan meals at some of London’s excellent vegan restaurants such as Plant Matter Kitchen and Globally Local. But today, I’m a Keto gal.

1 thought on “Where’s the Beef?”

  1. Good luck Lisa. My sister has had great results with a similar diet. It sounds like it really works well and quickly. I’ll be watching for updates and cheering you on ?

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