Lose the weight by losing the diet

A recent report from NPR discussed a tiny Greek island in the North Aegean Sea. This… A recent report from NPR discussed a tiny Greek island in the North Aegean Sea. This island, known as Icaria, has been dubbed a blue zone, an area where residents usually live longer and healthier. To discover how these people lived so long — nearly one in three make it to the age of 90 — researchers analyzed their lifestyles and diet.

Regarding the latter, the researchers conducted various tests to discover which nutrients or vitamins in the foods of Icaria made the people live so long. No doubt preposterous diets will emerge once the results receive publicity. In an attempt to cash in, companies will advertise the various antioxidants or minerals that such a diet has to offer.

But what we fail to understand is that we cannot break down the keys to a healthy life, at least from the perspective of food, into such discrete properties. This is the topic of a Michael Pollan’s book, “In Defense of Food.” Pollan, an author and professor at the University of California, Berkeley, wrote his book to disprove the tenants of nutritionism: the belief that food is simply the sum of its parts and that each food can break down into measurable and reproducible pieces.

Nutritionism is something that has conquered our kitchens. We are driven to eat based on the number of calories we consume or the specific ratio of vitamins we need. But what this has led to, according to Pollan, is an overall decrease in health for Americans.

This is because, through nutritionism, anything can be made to sound healthy, so long as it contains the right balance of vitamins and minerals. Even if such a blend is missing, anything is all right to eat as long as it avoids any demonized part of the food pyramid, such as fats and carbohydrates.

In this way, nutritionism plays very well into the hands of the food industry, which relies on scientific studies to prove the benefits of its products. Everything can become a health food. It only requires the correct endorsements and labels.

But this mindset has led to anything but health for Americans. By relying on specific nutrients and nothing else, we keep ourselves from getting any of the thousands of essential, uncategorized pieces of real food.

Instead of focusing on nutrient contents, Pollan offers a simple yet intricate set of guidelines: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.” When he talks about food, he doesn’t refer to simply anything someone might find on supermarket shelves. Much of what’s out there, Pollan says, are edible food-like substances that carry with them various health claims.

Pollan puts the responsibility back into the hands of consumers to first distinguish what is healthy and then get consumers back in the kitchen to make their own food. The second is self-explanatory but the first is simpler than it seems. For instance, if a product needs to prove how healthy it is, it probably isn’t good for you.

One can argue that Pollan’s views are elitist and that only the rich will have access to his diet. It’s common knowledge that organic food is more expensive. But that’s not what Pollan advocates — though he wouldn’t oppose it. Instead, this diet is more about returning to foods that don’t require ingredient labels.

We’ve often heard of the paradox regarding many European cultures that have diets high in fat and a population of healthy people. In the United States, we are presented with a similar paradox: Many people are obsessed with health while many others are some of the unhealthiest people in the world.

When we try to find a new trend that will reverse such poor health, eating real food is often overlooked as too simple. Instead, we need a miracle fruit high in antioxidants or anything with “low-fat” written across the package for us to feel healthy. But the simplest solution could be the best en route to creating a healthier country.