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Food Choices
Apr. 23rd, 2008 12:38 pmInteresting article about the emerging so-called Homo Obeseus. It puts forward the idea that the typical western diet is screwing us over by sending signals to our DNA to turn us into a "species" unable to cope with inflammation or balance our own metabolisms.
Dairy is a main culprit of promoting inflammation that the article's author cites. As some of you know, I've been struggling at removing dairy from my diet for going on four years now. I have regularly relapsed into eating dairy, but seeing as how I suffer from a certain pesky inflammatory ailment, asthma, reducing inflammation is of great interest to me. Most of my falling off the wagon is when we eat out, as most American cuisine has butter, milk, and cheese all through. It's practically impossible to avoid dairy completely at certain restaurants.
I don't think I'm ready to go vegan, but I am beyond ready to go completely dairy-free. My kids and husband, however, are not at all enthusiastic. My younger child's caloric intake would plummet, at least in the short term, if I removed dairy, as she takes most of it in the form of either yogurt or mac 'n' cheese or cheese pizza. My older child has turned her nose up at my dairy substitutes, especially soy yogurt and ice cream substitutes. Do you have any freaking idea how hard it is to get fully non-dairy cheese? Most soy and rice cheeses have caesin in them, a milk protein, so they melt like regular cheese. So it's dairy but not? Right. I am glad she likes falafel at Jerusalem Garden; there is some hope that I can build on that to reduce dairy in the future. Here's hoping I can find ways for us to unhook from the dairy economy.
Dairy is a main culprit of promoting inflammation that the article's author cites. As some of you know, I've been struggling at removing dairy from my diet for going on four years now. I have regularly relapsed into eating dairy, but seeing as how I suffer from a certain pesky inflammatory ailment, asthma, reducing inflammation is of great interest to me. Most of my falling off the wagon is when we eat out, as most American cuisine has butter, milk, and cheese all through. It's practically impossible to avoid dairy completely at certain restaurants.
I don't think I'm ready to go vegan, but I am beyond ready to go completely dairy-free. My kids and husband, however, are not at all enthusiastic. My younger child's caloric intake would plummet, at least in the short term, if I removed dairy, as she takes most of it in the form of either yogurt or mac 'n' cheese or cheese pizza. My older child has turned her nose up at my dairy substitutes, especially soy yogurt and ice cream substitutes. Do you have any freaking idea how hard it is to get fully non-dairy cheese? Most soy and rice cheeses have caesin in them, a milk protein, so they melt like regular cheese. So it's dairy but not? Right. I am glad she likes falafel at Jerusalem Garden; there is some hope that I can build on that to reduce dairy in the future. Here's hoping I can find ways for us to unhook from the dairy economy.
