I’ve decided to laugh at the huge divide between my experience with nutrition and the gospel that organizations like the American Heart Association preach, particularly when it comes to cholesterol.

They say: Eat “4.5 servings” of fruits and vegetables a day.

I say: Eat tons of vegetables! Some fruit! Way more than 4.5 servings!

They say: Eat “at least three 1-ounce-equivalent servings a day” of fiber-rich whole grains.

I say: NO! to grains. Read this, this and this. Then come talk to me.

But I was hired to do a job, and since I haven’t yet convinced my co-workers and company that Paleo is awesome, I still have to write articles that reflect what the company believes: stuff like “fat is bad,” “whole grains are good.” That kind of stuff.

So I found it kind of ironic when my doctor’s office (a different place) mailed me results from the blood panel they did on a recent wellcheck, and everything LOOKED AWESOME.

Total Cholesterol: 232 (This is high — it should be 125-200 mg/dL)
HDL (good cholesterol): 122 (range to be is is > or = 46 mg /dL)
Triglycerides: 32 (range to be in is < 150 mg / dL)
LDL (bad cholesterol): 104 (range to be in is < 130 mg / dL)

So the skinny is this: even though I regularly eat eggs and bacon, coconut milk, coconut oil, organ meats and other foods and other fats and meats despised by the American Heart Association, my cholesterol is high on the side of “good” and low on “bad.”

Hmmm….

Have you seen Food, Inc.?

There’s been a lot of buzz surrounding this documentary on the way food is produced and consumed in the United States, especially lately.  It’s been nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary feature and was featured on Oprah.

I don’t watch many movies, and I haven’t gone out of my way to see Food, Inc simply because I read A LOT about food, food production, and agriculture and I know a lot about what Food, Inc. examines.

I don’t know everything, of course, so when my Crossfit gym offered a free screening for I AM Crossfit Challenge clients, I decided to watch.

It was cold in the gym, especially on those hard metal chairs, but it was easy to forget about the cold while watching the movie.

I’ll forgo a “review” and just say that I thought it was very well done.

I did know a lot of what they talked about, but some things were new to me.  I think what horrified me the most was the way a multi-international seed company treats farmers.  I also did not know about laws that have been put in place to keep people from saying anything bad about industrialized food production without legal ramifications.

I also would like to see Kevin’s Law re-introduced in Congress – a law that would give the USDA the power to shut down food manufacturing plants that consistently fail health inspections.  Seriously, I was in tears during that segment – all I could think about was the safety of my own young son.

At the end of the film, the filmmakers had a list of suggestions for ways to change the way we eat and ultimately change the way America eats.  Many of them my family already does.  They include eating organically, patronizing farmers’ markets and planting a garden.

In the next few days, I’m going to talk about a few of those ideas, how my family has implemented them, and how I feel like we’ve benefited.

Sometimes I think it’s hard to make changes in your own life if you feel like you’re the only one going down a particular path.  You have questions, but who has answers?  Well, I don’t have all the answers, but if you read about my experiences, maybe you’ll find inspiration to make changes in your own life.

In case you’re interested in seeing Food, Inc for yourself, check out this trailer:

Sometimes I feel very alone in my decision to eat a Paleo diet.

Food in our culture – let’s face it, in any culture! — is very social.  People make food and share it with their families, friends and co-workers.

In my office, food is extremely social.  Food seems to arrive for the masses on a daily basis from generous Austinites or groups who want their cause to have media coverage.  Recently, I remember seeing pizza, cookies, breakfast tacos, candy and donuts all entering the office and being devoured quickly.

My co-workers used to notice that I did not join the throng queuing up for such treats.  All I said was, ”No thank you.”  Now they shrug and turn away.  They don’t bother offering anymore.

Sometimes it’s sad not joining in with my friends when they stand around gushing over how yummy the Tiff’s Treats are or how wonderful a baker the anchor is (she brings in homemade stuff all the time).  But at the same time, I feel very confident in my decisions.  I’m like a rock who doesn’t mind standing alone.  I don’t mind sharing information about the way I eat, but I try not to be a preacher.  Talking about food can be like talking about politics and religion.  I’ve found people are very attached to the way they eat and the kinds of foods they eat.  It can be just as much of a conversation stopper to discuss our eating habits as it can to bring up the Texas gubernatorial race.

I will say that I am strong in part because of the multitude of people I know who eat the same was as I do and are passionate about it.  We share meals, reveling in the quality of the meat and beauty of the greens we found at the farmer’s market.  We write on our blogs about new recipes we’ve tried and share them with our friends.  We share information back and forth, constantly learning more about the food we eat, where it comes from, and, in the process, more about ourselves.

It is hard to go against “conventional wisdom” sometimes, but a good support network can make all the difference.