Staff Pick: My Mental Health & An Irrational Fear Of Foods
Carrots:
Drawing courtesy of Daniel Roy Harper
The idea that carrots could improve your eyesight came from the British Air Force in World War II. Carrots do indeed benefit your eyes but not quite to the degree that the warring British suggested. It was a ruse to keep the Nazis in the dark about Britain's new technology. The overly ambitious carrot eater (consuming about one cup of carrots a day for months) could end up with too much beta-carotene in his system, which ultimately turns the skin orange. The Internet has been gracious enough to call this a beta-carotene "overdose."
Dairy:
Drawing courtesy of Daniel Roy Harper
People make it seem like I'm hanging out in a bad crowd by consuming dairy. Back in the day, milk built strong bones. It was necessary for a growing kid to drink it regularly. Today, however, it is repeatedly brought to my attention on health sites that we are apparently one of the only entities to drink another entity's milk. The growing rate of Lactose Intolerance seems to reinforce those notions of unnaturalness; for some people, the body doesn't carry the enzyme that allows lactose to be digested. The idea is that we weren't made to consume dairy. This has led to a significant rise in people deeming my bowl of milk and Cornflakes "unnatural," but I figured that was the case the moment I bought Cornflakes.
Canola Oil:
Image courtesy of rhexius.tumblr.com
This oil is high in omega-3 fatty acids, which, undoubtedly, are good for the body and the brain. Despite the oil's omega-3 acids, it catches flak for its shady ties to the rapeseed plant. Canola was bred from the rapeseed plant, which comes from the Latin word "rapum" for turnip. It has traces of a toxin called Erucic Acid, which is known to cause health problems, but the traces of this toxin are less than two percent in Canola Oil. Many experts assert that Canola is safe, and my wallet asserts that Canola is cheap. If it's assured by experts and enticingly cheap, then it can dress itself up however it wants.
Organic Food:
Image courtesy of rhexius.tumblr.com
The debate for organic comes from many angles. However, there is one point that remains uncontested: it is expensive. The people say, "It's raised better," and "It tastes better"; but until I get paid better, I just can't spend five dollars on a bell pepper.
The Mental Breakdown:
After all the research, I figured that the only safe route would be bread and water; that is, until I googled "wheat bread." The Internet told me it was a nutritional void and a danger to the public's health. I didn't have the heart to google "water."
Eating right should not have to break the bank (or my spirit). I'm not looking for the top ten vegetables to make me immortal. When I'm online, the Internet tells me that everything I like is somehow bad for me. Sometimes, I think the Internet may blow things out of proportion. These are things you can't help but think when, after all that research, your revelation is: "my food is trying to kill me."
More good stuff here:
- 4 Mushroom Varietal to Buy at the Farmers Market
- Republic of V: Vegan Grocery Store Review
- The "Yoga Mat" Ingredient
View the original post, Staff Pick: My Mental Health & An Irrational Fear of Foods, on Spoon University.