When thinking on food, I realize that I’m likely to be biased for several reason varying from health and of course my own personal opinion. To start with, I’m pre-disposed to diabetes because of insulin resistance which means that my body has a hard time processing and making use of the sugar that I eat as it can’t make use of the insulin my body produces. To fend off and put off my chances for fully developing diabetes I really have to watch what I eat. As a general rule of thumb, candy and carbs from things that are not vegetables are horrible for me; two pieces of bread without any protein will start to knock me out within twenty minutes of eating it. Pasta is very rarely an option for me. In theory, I could have all of these things in moderation but more often than not, if you give me a serving of, let’s say, chicken low mien, I’m not going to want to eat only the few bites I’m allowed to. So I’ve chosen to rid my diet of things I know are bad for my insulin resistance, lest I give into the temptation of how delicious they are and choose to splurge.
Another thing that affects my views on food is my heritage. I was born and raised Native American and as such, I’ve certainly eaten things that most people would avoid eating. (For the record, Bambi and Thumper are entirely delicious.) Likewise, typical or delicacies foods from other cultures such as insects or the brains of certain animals are capable of making me turn the other way. Between my health and my heritage, I place different food related priorities in front of others. To start with, because of my health, I do my best to have a balanced meal so that I’m not ingesting too much of one particular food and make sure to have lots of protein (which has been suggested by my endocrinologist) and before bed or at dinner, eating food that’s sugar will enter my blood stream at a much slower rate than junk food would. For example, eating a helping of rice at dinner or some nuts before bed instead of splurging on desert or having a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
As of now, I prioritize food that is healthy for a diabetic – low in sugar, hopefully high in protein, salads, vegetables, steamed, boiled or grilled food instead of fried food etc. Self control must be used because my brain oft times wants to prioritize iced tea, juices (which will put me to sleep just like certain carbs will), chips and perhaps things like pie. My sweet tooth is a terrible master at time and likes to try and trick me into thinking “satisfying” food for the moment > not needing to be on medication of the rest of my life. However, I have been making many improvements for the past few months and hope to continue to do so.
As for initial thoughts, I’m not exactly sure I have any. I think I have more ‘concerns’ in the sense that I don’t want this unit to turn into a health related “fast foods are awful for your body” unit because we’ve all heard that. We’re all capable, functioning young adults and we should be able to take responsibility for what we do to our bodies in addition to making sure we care for them and learn moderation. (In short, all the things that have been preached to us since middle school.) I would much rather learn about things like how food may be used in rituals or traditions aside from my own. For instance, I was watching the discovery channel and one tribe in African secludes the bride-to-be with her mother and grandmother were they continuously feed the young woman foods aimed to make her gain weight so she is nice and plump by the time the family is ready to find a suitor for her. (In attempts to show that the family is a good one and can take care of themselves in addition to spoil themselves.)
Another thing that affects my views on food is my heritage. I was born and raised Native American and as such, I’ve certainly eaten things that most people would avoid eating. (For the record, Bambi and Thumper are entirely delicious.) Likewise, typical or delicacies foods from other cultures such as insects or the brains of certain animals are capable of making me turn the other way. Between my health and my heritage, I place different food related priorities in front of others. To start with, because of my health, I do my best to have a balanced meal so that I’m not ingesting too much of one particular food and make sure to have lots of protein (which has been suggested by my endocrinologist) and before bed or at dinner, eating food that’s sugar will enter my blood stream at a much slower rate than junk food would. For example, eating a helping of rice at dinner or some nuts before bed instead of splurging on desert or having a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
As of now, I prioritize food that is healthy for a diabetic – low in sugar, hopefully high in protein, salads, vegetables, steamed, boiled or grilled food instead of fried food etc. Self control must be used because my brain oft times wants to prioritize iced tea, juices (which will put me to sleep just like certain carbs will), chips and perhaps things like pie. My sweet tooth is a terrible master at time and likes to try and trick me into thinking “satisfying” food for the moment > not needing to be on medication of the rest of my life. However, I have been making many improvements for the past few months and hope to continue to do so.
As for initial thoughts, I’m not exactly sure I have any. I think I have more ‘concerns’ in the sense that I don’t want this unit to turn into a health related “fast foods are awful for your body” unit because we’ve all heard that. We’re all capable, functioning young adults and we should be able to take responsibility for what we do to our bodies in addition to making sure we care for them and learn moderation. (In short, all the things that have been preached to us since middle school.) I would much rather learn about things like how food may be used in rituals or traditions aside from my own. For instance, I was watching the discovery channel and one tribe in African secludes the bride-to-be with her mother and grandmother were they continuously feed the young woman foods aimed to make her gain weight so she is nice and plump by the time the family is ready to find a suitor for her. (In attempts to show that the family is a good one and can take care of themselves in addition to spoil themselves.)
2nd attempt to write and post this comment:
ReplyDeleteLina,
I liked the flavor you added to your essay (Bambi, Thumper, math equation).
You should have written another draft to address the following issues;
a. eliminate throat clearing at the beginning
b. reduce clunky repetitiveness of insulin issues (interesting topic but reappeared unartfully)
c. create a meaningful conclusion
Also, I hope that you will use the course partly to develop a more critical eye that can see the nuances and/or contradictions in topics that now receive such blunt simplification as;
"I was born and raised Native American ..." and
"We’re all capable, functioning young adults and we should be able to take responsibility for what we do to our bodies in addition to making sure we care for them and learn moderation."