It is Not your Fault!

Let me share something with you, it is not your fault. If you find yourself not in control of food sometimes which I think most of us have struggled with at some point or another…listen up.

We are innately hard-wired to enjoy pleasurable experiences. This served our ancestors well during their time of surviving in the wild robust nature without them becoming food themselves! They learned that the most efficient way was to locate food that gave them the most fuel at one time. AND GET TO IT QUICK before being eaten by whatever was lurking around the corner! They discovered they must find food that encompassed the most calories at one sitting to help sustain them until their next unknown meal. They may have gathered and eaten 15 bananas at one time and left the watery lettuce until their next hopeful feast… which usually meant life or death for them.

So, what about today’s environment? Well, typically we don’t have to fight off anything big and wooly with large gnashing teeth looking to make us into their toothpick when we go to find something to sustain us. Instead, we leave our spears at home and grab the car keys and grocery bags. We are no longer choosing between a banana and watery lettuce; instead, we are choosing between a banana and a pizza, or cheeseburger, or greasy fries, or cake baked with trans-fat, you name it! Or we stay seated in our car and order through a drive-thru, continue to sit and eat while we drive. The options are endless and when they package them up so pretty, it is enticing as a kid on Christmas morning looking to tear open those presents! Who wouldn’t be tempted? We are stimulated by hearing about food on the radio, seeing it on TV with images of gooey yummy looking foods or you may attend a meeting and they bring sugar glazed donuts. So we “run” to the donuts, and the next thing we know, we’re crashing and tired at 2 PM looking for a pick-me-up! America is the sickest we have seen in today’s world! Yikes! But now we have a glimpse into part of the problem, right?

Instead of protecting and shielding ourselves from the saber-toothed tiger, we now have to protect and shield ourselves from the savory Cheeseburger advertisements and those magnets that pull your car into those convenient drive-thru places.

When we experience pleasure, a neurotransmitter called dopamine is released in our brain. We can feel this wonderful release of pleasure or “dopamine” by anything that makes us feel happy. It could be the excitement of when a new baby is born or enjoying a tub of ice-cream, to buying that new dress! Once we “feel” this pleasure, we want to repeat it because it feels good, but do you notice a wave of dopamine doesn’t last? Some of our “pleasurable food experiences” can spiral into some long-lasting unpleasurable health results. 

So, what do I mean? The more calorie-dense the food, the more of that happy hormone is released. And if our body is still programmed from our ancestors to seek out calorie dense foods, and we choose the wrong form… we are going to make ourselves sick. Like eating a moist chewy, oily, sugar laden candy bar vs a natural fresh piece of fruit and nuts. I’m not talking about a once in a while thing, we tend to do this too much! A lot of us no longer eat whole real foods like bananas, potatoes, beans, and veggies… instead, we are stimulated and made to feel like it is normal to eat something out of a package that may be ultra-processed. Or rely on fast foods that are thick with calories but lack nutrients to sustain us. We are feeding our bodies with unhealthy fats, preservatives, chemicals, pesticides, vegetable oils, high salt and high sugar intake. And let me tell you, a lot of food companies making ultra-processed food items are engineering them to hijack your tastebuds to want more of these high sugar, high salt, etc. Remember, higher calories and ingredients will stimulate that dopamine reaction to release and increase that “feel good” moment to come back for more! We did not evolve to eat ultra-processed unnatural foods. When we do, overtime our bodies start to malfunction after a while, right? Know anyone with digestive issues, stubborn adipose tissue, high cholesterol, diabetes, high blood pressure, skin issues, sleep issues, ongoing headaches, cancer, hormone imbalances, major mood swings, etc.? We are actually supposed to feel generally good, so if one feels bad/sick all the time, something we are fueling ourselves with is off.

I bet we could virtually agree that flowers would not do so well if we watered it with soda and sprayed it with hairspray? You would probably see some sad flowers… or if we put bleach in our car instead of gasoline, it may not run as well as we had hoped, right? Well, if flowers need specific fuel to grow, and our cars need specific fuel to work, why do we think we do not? Again, it is not your fault, unfortunately, our environment has desensitized us into thinking we are invincible and can eat and drink chemicals and be awesome. Until one day…we malfunction and develop something serious. We must stop pretending that food doesn’t matter, we must be aware of our surroundings.

I always hear “I could never give up milk-chocolate or cheese”. Well not your fault either, you’re possibly addicted. When we digest dairy, casomorphins (opioid peptides) are produced which activate the same receptors in our brain as morphine. This may be a reason that dairy like cheese or milk-chocolate may be addicting. Dairy has also been linked to encourage weight gain; considering cow’s milk was intended to grow a 60 lb. calf to a 700-pound cow as rapidly as possible. If you are trying to create a lean, healthy body, it may NOT “do a body good.” Including skim-milk, organic milk, whatever milk due to hormones within the milk specifically produced from the Mother cow for its baby calf to thrive. But instead we take it and consume it (not made for us) and it shifts our own hormones creating imbalances in our body. Recent studies have also associated dairy with increased risk of hip fractures and bone loss. Lastly, some dairy products carry high amounts of Phthalate-endocrine hormone disruptors (plastic chemical pollutants from the tubing/machine used on cows). These endocrine disruptors have been associated with increased abdominal fat, endometriosis in women, and reproductive health issues in men and women. What we used to survive on is sometimes not what is best to thrive on. Just like eating 15 bananas at one time may have kept them alive, but definitely not the best to thrive. For more information read- The China Study by Dr. T Colin Campbell and/or Keep it Simple, Keep it Whole – Your Guide to Optimum Health by Dr. Alona Pulde and Dr. Matthew Lederman.

So what do you do? Here are a couple ideas that can drastically help.

Don’t keep foods in your house that could potentially derail your health-progress. Even if you are relying on willpower, it will let you down at some point. That hardwire may just overpower you when the will is gone. Then a whole bag of chips is chosen over maybe a wholesome meal. If you don’t have access to it, it helps take away the chance of consuming it. Can’t hunt something that is not there…

If you find you always stop at a convenience store to “grab a snack” like a candy bar or whatever (insert calorie dense, non-nutritious pleasure here). Be prepared beforehand. Put on your grocery list something like a bag of organic, unsalted nuts and/or sulfur free, no added sugar dried fruit to keep in the car.

If you are going to a restaurant (especially if you go often), look at the menu ahead of time. Prepare and commit to finding something that will help you and not hinder you.

There are so many other hacks. And there are so many other alternatives to the calorie dense, non-nutritious options now that can fuel your body better without sacrificing taste and your health. You just have to care enough to look into it.

And remember your “why”, if you can’t avoid being around it, remember why you want to not have it or perhaps choose a healthier option… maybe it is – “that won’t help me get my cholesterol down I’ve been working so hard on”… or “that won’t help my blood sugar and I’m trying to avoid developing diabetes like my Dad”, or “every time I eat that it gives me a stomach ache and I feel terrible after”. Whatever the reason, remember “why” to trump that hardwired circuit!

Remember it is not your fault, but it is your responsibility if you want meaningful change. The power is in your hands.

Side Note: There is a lot of research on this, and I have only summarized the best I could from Dr. Pulde and Dr. Lederman on this subject who are sources more knowledgeable and can certainly articulate better than I. Of course, there is always much more to this, but this would end up being way longer than it already is! However, we have the same mission to share knowledge that may help us move forward in our lifetime.