I’m going to use gravity as an analogy for diet. Gravity is the force that pulls us toward the earth and makes us go down when we fall. We get injured by gravity when we fall and hit the ground (or something on the ground) hard enough to damage our bodies. Falls can happen whether we’re low to the ground, high above the ground, or anywhere in-between. And we all know that the greater the distance of the fall, the greater the force of impact, and the greater the risk of injury or even possibly death. Whether you believe in gravity or not, if you fall out of a window from the 15th story of a building, you have a pretty good idea what’s going to happen. While it’s highly likely that you will be injured or even die from such a fall, you could land on something soft – maybe an awning that catches you on the 14th floor or a safety net further down.
So why am I talking about gravity? Because I like to think of the risk of a fall and injury due to gravity as a great analogy to the risk of poor health and degenerative diseases due to diet and poor nutrition. Whether we choose to believe it or not, it doesn’t change the fact that we consistently see the same effects linked to the same causes over and over again. Just because you don’t believe you’re going to get injured or die if you jump out of a window doesn’t mean that it won’t happen. And just because you don’t believe you’re going to get a degenerative disease if you eat certain high-risk foods, including foods that you may not believe are high-risk, doesn’t mean that it won’t happen either.
Using this analogy, choosing to eat a nutrient-dense, whole plant-based diet is like being on the ground in terms of risk. You’re safe, yet things could still go wrong. You could get a degenerative disease while eating a whole plant-based diet just as you could trip and get injured while walking on the ground. However, your risk is extremely low in both cases. On the other hand, choosing to eat a diet that’s essentially nothing but refined sugars, saturated fats, and cholesterol is similar to hanging out of a window on the 15th floor of a building in terms of risk. Both are very dangerous and your risk is extremely high in both cases (you’re essentially a heart attack waiting to happen, probably in both cases…).
We make choices every day about things we do and things we put into our bodies. Sometimes we make higher-risk choices. If we manage the risk, it’s most likely going to be fine. Doing risky things adds spice to life! I’ve made some risky choices with respect to gravity. I love to jump from high points into water, which can be high risk. I manage the risk by making sure that the depth of the water is safe and that nothing is in the way. I once jumped out of an airplane, which can be extremely high risk. I managed the risk as best I could by jumping tandem with an expert and a parachute.
I’m not saying you can never eat your favorite foods. What I am saying is that you can manage your risk to minimize the possibility of ever getting a chronic degenerative disease. A great way to do that is to create habits that incorporate mostly nutrient-dense whole plant-based foods into your diet while at the same time reducing your intake of refined sugars, saturated fat, and cholesterol whenever possible. Like having a parachute if you jump out of an airplane, it will dramatically lower your risk of ever being diagnosed with a degenerative disease, and allow you to occasionally enjoy some of your favorite, high-risk foods.
So why am I talking about gravity? Because I like to think of the risk of a fall and injury due to gravity as a great analogy to the risk of poor health and degenerative diseases due to diet and poor nutrition. Whether we choose to believe it or not, it doesn’t change the fact that we consistently see the same effects linked to the same causes over and over again. Just because you don’t believe you’re going to get injured or die if you jump out of a window doesn’t mean that it won’t happen. And just because you don’t believe you’re going to get a degenerative disease if you eat certain high-risk foods, including foods that you may not believe are high-risk, doesn’t mean that it won’t happen either.
Using this analogy, choosing to eat a nutrient-dense, whole plant-based diet is like being on the ground in terms of risk. You’re safe, yet things could still go wrong. You could get a degenerative disease while eating a whole plant-based diet just as you could trip and get injured while walking on the ground. However, your risk is extremely low in both cases. On the other hand, choosing to eat a diet that’s essentially nothing but refined sugars, saturated fats, and cholesterol is similar to hanging out of a window on the 15th floor of a building in terms of risk. Both are very dangerous and your risk is extremely high in both cases (you’re essentially a heart attack waiting to happen, probably in both cases…).
We make choices every day about things we do and things we put into our bodies. Sometimes we make higher-risk choices. If we manage the risk, it’s most likely going to be fine. Doing risky things adds spice to life! I’ve made some risky choices with respect to gravity. I love to jump from high points into water, which can be high risk. I manage the risk by making sure that the depth of the water is safe and that nothing is in the way. I once jumped out of an airplane, which can be extremely high risk. I managed the risk as best I could by jumping tandem with an expert and a parachute.
I’m not saying you can never eat your favorite foods. What I am saying is that you can manage your risk to minimize the possibility of ever getting a chronic degenerative disease. A great way to do that is to create habits that incorporate mostly nutrient-dense whole plant-based foods into your diet while at the same time reducing your intake of refined sugars, saturated fat, and cholesterol whenever possible. Like having a parachute if you jump out of an airplane, it will dramatically lower your risk of ever being diagnosed with a degenerative disease, and allow you to occasionally enjoy some of your favorite, high-risk foods.
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