@kylek717, congrats for tackling such a complex topic! It may be better to address something huge like this in multiple posts, since there is so much to cogitate at once, but I wanted to offer some thoughts. There are many different definitions of healthy, depending on what group you represent. For example: What is labeled as "healthy" according to the food industry and USDA (if you are in the U.S.); the perception of "healthy" according to the "average" American; and "healthy" as determined through unbiased, credible scientific research. The latter definition is what I try to keep up on. So much else in your article to comment upon, but I will try to keep it brief! I will just say that yes, "organic" is essentially "greenwashing", or just another way to appeal to a certain market segment...at least when it applies to processed foods. However, some studies have shown even minimal amounts of pesticide residues to have negative effects on humans, and that would go for GMOs as well, since some GMOs are "Roundup-ready" and therefore heavily sprayed (not necessarily the crop itself that is harmful, but the pesticide residues). This all accumulates up the food chain, of course, so eating low on the food chain helps, as well as soaking produce in a saltwater solution and rinsing (can't really rinse eggs or meat or dairy, since pesticides would be well-integrated). Anyway, nice job for tackling this tricky subject! Dr. Michael Greger has several videos on the pesticide/organic topic, with links to scientific peer-reviewed studies:
- https://nutritionfacts.org/video/are-the-benefits-of-organic-food-underrated-or-overrated/
- https://nutritionfacts.org/video/is-monsantos-roundup-pesticide-glyphosate-safe
There's more relevant articles and videos on that site as well. You can just search nutritionfacts.org for "organic" or "pesticide" and it will list them all. It's a nonprofit website in the public interest (rather than corporate).
Those videos were pretty informative thank you for sharing! I really wrote this just to sit down and get all my thoughts out awhile ago and I've been tweaking and reposting it based off of new things I find. I'm honestly just sick of people preaching about organic and non-gmo food as if it's the only thing that even matters. My aim is to just to show people that fruits and vegetables as well as lean meats and whole grains are what matters and not whether they are organic/non-gmo. It seems like you know your stuff though so I'm definitely going to be on the lookout for more from you considering how rare it is for people to link me to things that aren't fake doctors talking about the magic of veganism in youtube videos. Thank you so much for taking the time to write that comment out I very much appreciate it!
LOL...fake doctors and magic veganism 😊 Yeah, the hype around organic, GMO, and even "chemicals" can get pretty silly. If you're into the high-quality nutrition science stuff, check out Dr. Greger's book, "How Not to Die". It's got something like 150 pages (I said PAGES) of scientific references in the back. That made me sit up and pay attention. Facts are a different thing entirely from people writing about a strong belief in something. Dr. T. Colin Campbell's book, "The China Study", is also excellent. I'm pretty passionate about this science-based whole plant food stuff, so I spend more time on it than most other things... 🌷 Keep up the good pontifications!!!
I'm curious if you have any thoughts on that new comedy... I mean documentary "What the Health"
I've heard of it, but haven't seen it yet. Google says it's by the same folks as "Cowspiracy", which I thought was surprisingly well done. I'm trying to keep up on all plant-based diet books and documentaries, so I'll give it a look. What did you think of it?
I've heard and seen enough clips about it to know I will never ever be watching it
Huh...I just watched the trailer. What exactly do you feel is comedic about it?
In the clips ive seen, they claim dairy is racist, no amount of carbs ever can make you fat, chicken causes diabetes, and that vegan blood kills cancer cells
Interesting...
I just watched the trailer and they left all the nonsense out of it haha, my main problems are the lack of science to back up like 85-90 percent of what they claim as well as trying to tell people veganism is the only way to be healthy which just makes people feel like its out of their reach so they dont even bother trying
O.K., well I'm curious, so I'll watch it at some point. If people are using diet to try to be healthy (or healthier), it all depends on what their definition of healthy is and what their goals are. If they just want to lose 10 lbs for their wedding, just about any diet will do. If they want to live as long as possible and be as disease-free as possible until the end, well then yes, the science shows plant based wins hands down. Perhaps people need motivation (e.g., onset of diabetes, cancer diagnosis, heart attack, etc.), good information, and gentle guidance, but it is totally within anyone's reach.