My friend has challenged me to replace sweetener with sugar. Frankly, the idea had never even entered my head. I’m not quite sure what goes into the little blue dispenser I carry around with me – but why have sugar, when I could have calorie free sweetness instead?
It started me thinking – this sweetener challenge – of a few automatic assumptions that I have around food; and the extent to which weight loss, even though medically un-needed, still seems to rule the roost.
My food choices remain based, at some subconscious level, on the calorific content – and I don’t often consider the other variables that might begin to factor in.
There are, I am beginning to see, a range of reasons why I might chose one food – over another; rather than basing my selection on whether something is full fat – or calorie free.
So here are a few other considerations that might help me to make up my mind –
1. Nutrition
I don’t want to replace one obsession – with a new one – but I don’t really give that much thought to what goes into my ‘low-calorie’ food; and, particularly, what replaces the ‘natural’ stuff that’s been taken out.
I can hazard a guess that it’s “artificial” or “flavoured” – but I haven’t really thought about what this nutritionally means; nor the good stuff that I am swopping for the privilege of going sugar-free.
Factoring the natural nutrients in might, therefore, play a part in my deliberations – and a desire to get the best out of my food, provide a way of challenging my out-dated assumption that healthy means the same as fat-free.
2. Taste
Let’s face it, this one’s still a challenge; but even I know that the skimmed milk I buy is a little more watery than the semi-skimmed version; and the fat-free yoghurts, not quite as creamy as those with whole milk.
Choosing food on the basis of how it tastes is an interesting concept to me. It means that you’re opting for a sensory experience, and creating a little space away from questions of deserving or notions of guilt…
And, okay, you might not always be able to indulge a preference for chocolate – or strawberries and cream – or roasted vegetables – or whatever gets your taste buds tingling -
But a little of what you like, and a bit of attention to the taste – and smell – and enjoyment – might be another criteria for what goes on my plate.
3. Energy
It took me a while to remember that food’s primary purpose is fuel. It feeds. And sometimes we need more fuel than at other times.
Food choices come in a context. In the most basic of terms, a busy day probably demands more in the tank. And, as well as the emotional – and sensory – and health benefits, remembering the science should probably play a part in what I chose to eat.
4. Body
The body is also a context in its own right, and it’s important – I imagine – to listen to how the body feels, as well as what it’s been up to. For example, I have struggled with IBS over the past few years and, when it’s being particularly difficult, there are certain foods that my body certainly won’t let in.
Vitamin C if I’ve got a cold; hot foods on a cold day; spinach and eggs when I get a little shakey; and yoghurt when I’m feeling bloated –
I am slowly learning to listen to what my body tells me that it needs.
5. Ethics
I’m not sure how I feel about eating ethics. My ten year stint of vegetarianism was driven by a desire to lose weight, and not any genuine concern over the animals that I was consuming. Ethical considerations – where food has come from, the environmental costs, the people that have slaved over its production, where it’s sold – might, I suppose, influence the food decision-making; and be far more important, in real terms, than whether something promises to make me fat – or thin.
* * *
There are more – and I haven’t even thought about how these sit in relations to emotions, or guilt, or intuitive eating –
But I am beginning to rock the notion that calorific value should be the determining factor; because I’d like to take account of some of these other considerations, as well.
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Tags: Eating, Food, mind and body, nutrition
