Why is all the great food unhealthy?

[the Interceptor]

Here's a question that came to my mind a long time ago. I consider it to be a fact (nuances to be discussed) that all the food that tastes great (pizza, pasta, meat and so on) tends to make you obese, while all the healthy stuff (fruit, vegetables) just isn't as "good". I've got nothing against an apple or a banana now and then, but I don't consider it to be a full meal. Instead, I'm going wild on everything that's not good for me.

But why is that so? Why doesn't lettuce taste like chocolate, or a banana like lasagna? There is a trend inside all that, which seems to be that the tasty stuff contains a lot of fat or sugar. And I have developed a theory why we prefer to eat that, instead of healthy things: native instincts. In the very past, we had to hunt for food to survive. Through that, our body developed a system to ask for food that it can store, so it will survive some time without any. Therefor, it asks for food with a lot of fat, which can be stored. The healthy stuff however contained nothing of importance, so the body learned to avoid that.

Of course, this is only a theory, which may be totally wrong. So, I'm curious what you think or even know, and probably lighten up the dark.

Regards
the Interceptor

 

[Bram Turismo]

It's all a conspiracy between maufacturers to make us buy more things like hometrainers I guess:

They put alot of crap in it (this make the food so good), this food then makes us fat, forcing us to go and buy things so that we can lose it again

It worked against me!

 

[ExigeEvan]

Because we are naturally inclined to sweet things.

Sweet means more sugar, sugar means energy, energy keeps you alive. However, because we are no longe rliving in caves we have too much sweet stuff to eat. Hence we get fat.

 

[Barracuda]

And we have playstations and xbox's so instead of "hey, lets go play ball" its "dude, i just got halo 2, lets skip school and play that until our eyes bleed" which inevitably leads to eating junk food and not burning off the consumed energy.

 

[GT_Jim]

And we have playstations and xbox's so instead of "hey, lets go play ball" its "dude, i just got halo 2, lets skip school and play that until our eyes bleed" which inevitably leads to eating junk food and not burning off the consumed energy.

That's sooooo right man... 👍

 

[Omnis]

Why is this question at hand unbelievably subjective?

 

[OZZYGT]

Pasta, my friend, is actually one of the most healthiest foods you can eat.
It may not be as beneficial as vegetables or fruits, but if you eat a lot of pasta, for a long period of time, you won't be seeing yourself over 180 pounds looking for a diet or a gym to loose all that extra fat.

It is American style pasta that get people fat. Because they add the extra extra cheese, extra tomato, extra meat, extra everything! How in hell, are you not going to have healthy issues like that?!
Now, the downside of eating light pasta is, the taste won't be as good and creamy as when you ate it with all that stuff in it; And it's a shame that most Americans, are not willing to give up taste in order to eat well...
But if you are really concerned about your health, lighten up and find ways to eat healthy and enjoy it at the same time.

Boil some spaghetti, put some olive oil, oregano, basil if you want, and some tomato sauce, but only some, and NO MEATBALLS! che schifo! And you'll be fine.

 

[Omnis]

Pasta, my friend, is actually one of the most healthiest foods you can eat.
It may not be as beneficial as vegetables or fruits, but if you eat a lot of pasta, for a long period of time, you won't be seeing yourself over 180 pounds looking for a diet or a gym to loose all that extra fat.

It is American style pasta that get people fat. Because they add the extra extra cheese, extra tomato, extra meat, extra everything! How in hell, are you not going to have healthy issues like that?!
Now, the downside of eating light pasta is, the taste won't be as good and creamy as when you ate it with all that stuff in it; And it's a shame that most Americans, are not willing to give up taste in order to eat well...
But if you are really concerned about your health, lighten up and find ways to eat healthy and enjoy it at the same time.

Boil some spaghetti, put some olive oil, oregano, basil if you want, and some tomato sauce, but only some, and NO MEATBALLS! che schifo! And you'll be fine.

In fact, just cut up some plum tomatoes, zucchini, and onion, cook that, and make that the "sauce" instead of using the boyardee flavored tomato sauce that permeates the archetypal american "spaghetti and meatballs."

Fresh > Can in both taste and health.

 

[OZZYGT]

In fact, just cut up some plum tomatoes, zucchini, and onion, cook that, and make that the "sauce" instead of using the boyardee flavored tomato sauce that permeates the archetypal american "spaghetti and meatballs."

Fresh > Can in both taste and health.

Humm...che bono! You can also mix Spaghetti with tuna or sardines. That is healthy and tasty as well!

 

[Dougboy]

Speaking of lasagna, ever had vegi lasagna? I had it once and there was all these grilled zucchini, peppers, sun dried tomatoes in replacement of the meat and it was delicious

 

[Danoff]

We eat to survive, and our bodies enjoy things that pack the most energy for us - which is why we like sugar so much and care so little for lima beans.

Leafy things take a lot of energy to digest, and they give little in return. Sugar, on the otherhand, breaks down and gives us a ton of energy. Your body wants to get as much energy as possible because, in the wild, your main objective is to not starve.

Now that you're about as far from starvation as possible, these impulses don't do you any good... but that doesn't stop your biological makeup from stepping in and telling you what tastes good.

You'll notice that the green things that don't taste quite so good are better than yet other green things that really don't offer much.

You'll enjoy a plate full of brocolli far more than a plate full of grass. Likewise, lettuce is better than tree bark. Some animals eat these things, they can obviously supply some energy - but people's stomaches are designed to handle easier to digest things.... the kinds of things we ate when we lived in the rainforest - bananas.

We evolved in a place of bounty - in a part of the world where food is very easy to come by. Because of that our stomaches are designed to handle easy-to-digest foods with a strong preference for fruit over greens. Your body didn't evolve to help you survive past your mid-thirties, and that's because natural selection doesn't work once you've procreated. It honestly doesn't matter from an evolutionary point of view if you live to be 100 because you're probably done producing children far earlier.

To that end, we look for food that will fatten us up and give us the most energy right away. The kinds of things that keep us healthy over the long term never factor into the equation.

 

[Touring Mars]

I wouldn't say that all great food is unhealthy... I think that statement is more of an opinion than a statement of fact. I agree with Omnis is that the question is loaded... it would be more accurate to say (or more pertinent to ask) 'Why is unhealthy food so tasty?', and danoff has done a good job answering that. Suffice it to say, everything is OK in moderation, and as part of a balanced (i.e. otherwise healthy) diet. One thing worse that eating an unbalanced and 'unhealthy' diet is not eating at all... that'll kill you alot quicker than eating pizza every night...

 

[Roo]

One thing worse that eating an unbalanced and 'unhealthy' diet is not eating at all... that'll kill you alot quicker than eating pizza every night...

Oddly, I was thinking of asking that exact question - what's worse, eating junk or not eating at all? I usually go through most of Saturday when I'm at home not eating anything rather than eating that muffin that's in the kitchen, because I reasoned that some fat/sugar/E numbers is worse than none. Plus I'm lazy.

 

[SS69]

It depends what you like. I actually prefer vegetables, fruits, and other healthy foods to 'junkfood'. Every now and then I'll get a fast food hamburger or eat a candy bar, but I dont feel well afterwords. Even as a child I didnt really have a taste for sweets and other processed crap. The only unhealthy thing I really indulge in is Dr.Pepper, and I even keep that to a minumum.

 

[F1GTR]

In fact, just cut up some plum tomatoes, zucchini, and onion, cook that, and make that the "sauce" instead of using the boyardee flavored tomato sauce that permeates the archetypal american "spaghetti and meatballs."

Fresh > Can in both taste and health.

Or like, follow the instructions Clemenza gives Michael in The Godfather...

Our palettes are accustomed to a high amount of fat/sugar in food, since this generation is brought up on stuff like that. However, if you eat low fat foods long enough, you'll actually dislike fatty foods since you've become used to it.

 

[Danoff]

Our palettes are accustomed to a high amount of fat/sugar in food, since this generation is brought up on stuff like that. However, if you eat low fat foods long enough, you'll actually dislike fatty foods since you've become used to it.

Even a dislike for fatty foods can make natural sense. The ability to "acquire" tastes allows you to settle in and enjoy the foods in an environment that might not offer you with things that taste particularly good. Nature couldn't just have people starve if they were surrounded by beets. So people who were surrounded by beets learned to like beets. They even start to dislike other foods (at first) since it is foreign and not necessarily trustworthy... plus your palette has become tuned to your region.

There is no natural reason why human beings would prefer asparagus to cake. From an evolutionary standpoint asparagus is completely inferior to cake.

Perhaps you can become accustomed to asparagus. That's fine, and there's a reason for it. Perhaps you can even learn to like asparagus, and even dislike cake. But you can undo all that as well.

 

[Barracuda]

I have a big problem with not eating at the right time. In the morning, If i eat, my stomach feels like its going to explode. but even without eating in the morning, my stomach is still very uneasy. At lunch time, I stay in my classroom and go on the internet ( I also don't get money for lunch ).

So i can't eat breakfast and i don't eat lunch which leads me to eating alot when i get home. Ill usually have a sandwich with a soda ( even though i had just previously had a soda on the ride home ), and if there is a full bag of chips, i wont stop eating them until the bag is almost 3/4 gone ( i mean the big bags ). even after im done eating, ill keep checking the pantry and fridge for little snacks ( usually to no avail ). Then after that ill have dinner an hour or two later.

This must be killing my stomach, and leading to the main problem im having with my stomach. surprisingly, this only happens when i wake up on school days leading the doctors to believe its stress related . On the weekend or during the summer, i can wake up early, eat breakfast, and be perfectly fine

my diet is still horrible though

 

[Sureboss]

What kind of things would you have in the morning which make you feel sick, uneasy, etc?

 

[Bram Turismo]

That's probably the worst thing you can do Teamdiablo, not eating for the whole day and stuffing yourself up after school...That's like, a calorybomb you're using!

My uncle lost 40 kilos 2 years ago, and he ate 5 times a day. However, he told me that I didn't had to eat much, just little, and that 5 times a day keeps the need to stuff yourself up away! 👍 I'm following his path, I go jogging at least 3 times a week now (10 km.) and I now weigh 88.6 kg. while I had a weight of 95 kg. last year 👍

 

[Sakiale]

Speaking of lasagna, ever had vegi lasagna? I had it once and there was all these grilled zucchini, peppers, sun dried tomatoes in replacement of the meat and it was delicious

Seeing as I'm vegitarian, yeah. But every time I eat dairy products or eggs, I get sinuses...

So I can only eat it once in a while.

 

[OZZYGT]

My uncle lost 40 kilos 2 years ago, and he ate 5 times a day. However, he told me that I didn't had to eat much, just little, and that 5 times a day keeps the need to stuff yourself up away! 👍 I'm following his path, I go jogging at least 3 times a week now (10 km.) and I now weigh 88.6 kg. while I had a weight of 95 kg. last year 👍

Yes, that's very very good. Also *ahem*, Meditarranean style diet FTW gentlemen!

 

[Barracuda]

What kind of things would you have in the morning which make you feel sick, uneasy, etc?

ive tried everything.

It used to be a bowl of cereal and orange juice until i started not feeling good and having to be in the bathroom most of my 1st period.

I thought it was the orange juice, so i started just having a bowl of cereal. again, this didn't turn out well leading me to believe it was the milk.

I started then just trying anything, dry toast, granola bar, etc..... which also lead me to feel sick in the morning.

Its just weird because 2 or 3 years ago i could have cereal, orange juice, and a coffee ( more like 1/2 coffee, 1/2 milk ) in the morning, but i was also involved in sports so that may be why this is happening.

I don't do much anymore and i have a very slow metabolism already so it really sucks for me ( not that im obese now, I'd just say im a tad overweight ). This could also explain why i haven't grown much in the past year. god i need some help, lol.

 

[Sureboss]

Have you seen a doctor about it?

For as most cereals (those you've mentioned) involve wheat you could have an intolerance to it, though it's a big shot in the dark.

 

[3-Wheel Drive]

Unhealthy food is good, because fat is delicious.

 

[Danoff]

For changing your diet I would start slow. Try drinking a glass of OJ or milk in the morning. If you can handle that, build up.

But definitely don't skip lunch.

 

[Barracuda]

the third time i had to stay home due to extreme stomach pains my mom had me checked out. She had me go to the doctor, have my blood tested, and an x-ray done.

out of all that they didn't find out anything. My mom said to really figure out whats wrong they'll have to do an upper GI series.

as for my diet, i REALLY need to change it. I keep telling my mom to buy fruit and vegetables, and stop buying chips, soda, and little snacks but she refuses to. My problem is, ill tell myself at the beginning of the day "ok, lets try no soda today or only one can" but at the end of the day, all im thinking is "screw that, im hungry and wicked thirsty". For me to stop i either need an incentive ( like say $10 dollars a week ), or i need it taken away from me, which is not going to happen.

 

[Roo]

I used to ask my mum to buy fruit, but then I'd forget about it and a week later she'd say "There's some grapes/bananas/apples/whatever that need eating, you know", and I wouldn't get round to it. Now, however, I buy my own fruit, so I know how much money I'll be wasting if I don't eat it. I also eat the fruit at work, when there's less other food to distract me. Now I'm eating a minimum of 4 portions of fruit and veg a day, and drinking plenty of water.

Try spending the money you'd normally spend on fizzy drinks on fruit instead. If your mum keeps buying the unhealthy stuff, ask her for the money she would normally spend on crisps (what you know as chips, I think) and soda so you can go and buy your own fruit. If she sees you actually with some fruit and not, say, a new computer game, she might be more supportive. Plus water's a darn sight cheaper than soda.

 

[Danoff]

For me to stop i either need an incentive ( like say $10 dollars a week ), or i need it taken away from me, which is not going to happen.

I guess good health isn't enough of an incentive? I'd suggest trying not to incentivize it and simply work on raw will power. It'll help you in other aspects of life as well.

 

[Barracuda]

well i have decided to start eating right and for now, ive been doing pretty good, buts its only been a day.

what i do now is, depending on what my stomach is up for, ill have a granola bar and a juice box in the morning. during lunch ill have just a peanut butter sandwich. when i get home ill have a bowl of cereal ( most likely special k ), and then ill just have whatever we have for dinner.

I think that will work pretty well, don't you? my mom said she would start buying fruit so ill probably substitute the granola bar for an apple. Ive also restricted myself to having 1 soda a week. lets see how long this can last, hopefully for a long time.

 

[Danoff]

well i have decided to start eating right and for now, ive been doing pretty good, buts its only been a day.

what i do now is, depending on what my stomach is up for, ill have a granola bar and a juice box in the morning. during lunch ill have just a peanut butter sandwich. when i get home ill have a bowl of cereal ( most likely special k ), and then ill just have whatever we have for dinner.

I think that will work pretty well, don't you? my mom said she would start buying fruit so ill probably substitute the granola bar for an apple. Ive also restricted myself to having 1 soda a week. lets see how long this can last, hopefully for a long time.

1 soda a week? How will you live? j/k, I know some people do that. Not me though, I have at least 1/day.