Fifty years ago, we did not know smoking was linked to cancer. As a result, smoking was an acceptable past time and popular among all age groups. You could smoke just about anywhere, including school. At my old high school, my father recalls a designed smoking room near the school entrance that was always filled to capacity. Since that time though, things have changed dramatically and smoking is considered unacceptable in most public places. We now know the harmful effects of tobacco; thus the vast majority of us choose not to smoke. Smoking, among many other terrible things it does to our body, causes cancer, and weighs heavily on the health care system.
If we know something is harmful to our body, why do we do it anyway? Why would we engage in any behavior that shortens our life? Why would we put anything into our bodies that is not pure?
If we could apply this same logic to food (why would we eat anything that does not contribute positively to our health) we would be a healthier society. Our kids would not be developing diseases (typically not seen until adulthood), and our health care system would not be hampered by curable diseases, such as childhood obesity.
Why do we continue eating foods that supply little or no nutritional value, make us overweight, cause disease, and shorten our lives? Why do we continue to pollute our bodies with sugar, fats and salt? To answer my own question, I think the answer is quite simple. There is a major difference between knowing and doing, especially with food! Making unhealthy food choices is all too easy, as “entertainment food” is everywhere. Much of our daily socialization revolves around food, and we find comfort in food. We eat when we are sad, upset, or stressed rather than talk about our feelings.
Without a doubt, food plays an enormous role in all of our lives. Regardless what the role, or reasons why we eat, we must keep sight of the primary role of food. Food is fuel for our bodies and should supply us with energy. I guess this is the difference between knowing and doing. Sometimes we know what we should be doing, but fail to put these things into practice.
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