Lower Calorie Does Not Mean Healthier

Everyone loves an over-simplification.

Human behavior or lack of education? I’m not quite sure yet.

Health is incredibly complex- and surely not dictated by any one meal or even several meals. If we know that, then there’s no way to make a “healthy recipe”- because no one, single meal is health producing or health detracting.

So when a client told me she made a “healthier” version of dinner- I asked more questions. What she really meant was that it was lower calorie- which isn’t the same as “healthier.”

Depending on who you talk to- sugar is bad, even from fruit. Meat is bad, no matter where it comes from. Carbs are either all bad or some are better than others. You can have sugar but only a little. You can eat fruit but not these kinds. You can eat veggies but only if they’re this color. Don’t drink diet soda. Only drink diet soda. Don’t drink soda at all but wine is OK. Beer is bad. Vodka is fine. Alcohol kills you. Celery- but juice it. Cauliflower but make it pizza. Chemicals are bad but let’s eat vegan cheese- that’s different. Potatoes- but only sweet. No potatoes ever. Only special kinds of butter. No dairy. Dairy has protein. More protein. More plants. No protein- only plants! Soy. Soy causes cancer. Rice but only brown. Fine, rice but weigh it. No cookies. Only cookies on special occasions. Cheat day. Cheat meal. No cheat days ever. Skip entire days of eating and call it valiant. Coffee is toxic. Coffee boosts your metabolism. Tea. Not if it has caffeine. No processed foods! Wine is totally not processed!

Exhausted yet? Right. Exactly.

Avocados are more calorically dense than a packet of Splenda- what’s healthier then? See how this logic sucks? Lower calorie does not mean healthier- not even close.

Get it together, homegirl. This shit is NUTS.