The Importance of a Controlled Diet

Now I do understand that going on a traditional "Diet" does mean that there is control happening. The problem is that this control usually comes with the limiting of certain food types, or the exclusion of most food types, which in itself can actually be detrimental to good health.

Furthermore, the type of control brought about by "a diet" usually means that emotionally "the dieter" knows that he or she will have a time limit after which return to the old ways is almost inevitable.

Now, as far as I am concerned, there are only two things that have to happen to ensure that what is eaten is actually good for the health:

1. Acquire the knowledge about what food actually is and is not good for your health
2. THIS IS THE BIGGY - Break The Emotional Ties To Food

The western diet is originally and still, based on masses of carbohydrates - carbs forming the base of the triangle used by governments as their "model" for a healthy diet:


A TYPICAL CARB BASED PYRAMID

The biggest danger of a lifetime of following the guidelines of the above type of food triangle is that we are all hooked on sugar. Most of the stuff in the base of the triangle is one step away from sugar, and sugar is precisely what the body recognises those products as. If you look at the top of the triangle it says to only eat very limited amounts of sugars.

You now therefore know that the information in the government backed food triangle is absolute nonsense. It actually contains other information that is nonsense - more on that later.

However, the worst effect of eating foods that turn to sugar is the emotional dependance that builds up in relation to these foods. What do you include in your list of "treats"? Chocolate, toffee - or are you a crisps or chips person? All of these so called treats are related directly to sugar. How many of us think of a green smoothie as the ideal treat? The fact is that whilst our emotions push us in the direction of sugars, our bodies would choose the green smoothie or the salad every time.

So how do we sort this problem out? One certainty is that breaking the emotional tie to sugar is as difficult as it is for the alcoholic to break the emotional tie to alcohol. I know this - I have been trying to ditch sugars for around ten years.

So, back to the title of this Blog - the only way to make sure you eat a healthy diet is to BREAK the emotional tie to food of the wrong type by exerting self control.

More on this tomorrow.