The Future of Food

There is a revolution happening in the farm fields and on the dinner tables of America -- a revolution that is transforming the very nature of the food we eat.

THE FUTURE OF FOOD offers an in-depth investigation into the disturbing truth behind the unlabeled, patented, genetically engineered foods that have quietly filled U.S. grocery store shelves for the past decade.

We all should watch The Future of Food.

I watched it this weekend immediately after re-watching Morgan Spurlock's Super Size Me, and it made me even more conscious of the fact that most people don't think a great deal about what they are putting into their bodies. Eating has, by and large, become a mindless, automatic activity, and food preparation even more so with the preponderance of boxed mixes and frozen meals. I've always enjoyed cooking from scratch, and although I am a lousy gardener, I appreciate the flavors and benefits of the freshest produce possible.

After watching The Future of Food, I am even more determined to be mindful of what I am using as fuel for my body and why. Vegetarianism & veganism have always interested me both for health reason as well as ethical ones. In my love of meat, I have been able to eat it even though with each bite I have felt guilty about all the nameless cattle who walked into the abbatoirs to provide us with those delicious steaks.

For some reason, I have an easier time of it if I tell myself that I am doing this for health reasons. I guess you could say that I take my health more seriously than animals' health. For now, anyway.

Vegan Again

22 years ago I became a Vegan briefly.

Since that time I have run the gamut of diets and eating philosophies: South Beach, Ornish, full-fledged omnivore, but I've always come back to thinking about Vegetarian/Veganism.

Recently I've been feeling fatigued and cold all the time, have had problems with hair breakage and unexplained weight gain. I thought for sure that it was my thyroid, so I scheduled an appointment to see my doctor for my yearly physical. Many blood tests and one step on the scale later, we found that my thyroid was not the culprit, but that my cholesterol and other results were really quite good.

We guessed that my being a lazy-ass was the culprit. I resolved to start exercising, perhaps to take up morning yoga again. I thought that this might be a good chance to drop the meat and dairy from my diet. When I'd adopted a vegetarian diet back when I was 18, I lost a ton of weight fairly quickly. Unfortunately, I had not read a lot about how to maintain a vegan diet in a healthy way, and was unable to sustain it.

I've read a lot more since then, and with the powerful search tool of the internet handy, finding new recipes to test and like-minded people for support is easier than it ever was.

Here's to my journey. :)