Re: Extreme CR

[Guest guest]

When you think about it, and considering the type of media coverage

CR has been getting, the general public is seeing CRONies as a bunch

of crackpots who eat practically nothing. A lot of this attitude is

actually fueled by the fast/processed food industry and the kind of

food and the quantity of food they have 'educated' people into

thinking is what they WANT to eat. Never mind what they SHOULD eat.

I just repeated this story this morning to a co-worker who has a teen-

age son who is quite thin: A former co-worker and his wife were both

rather slight, as were all three daughters. Their oldest daughter

was very thin, and always complained that her stomach hurt after she

ate.

(Aside - in spite of the doctor's insistence that this was not due to

a food allergy, mom later took her off all milk products, and the

problem went away.)

Anyway, the dad took the daughter to the doctor at one point for a

cold or something, and the doctor made some stupid a** comment along

the lines of " if you don't start feeding these kids I'm going to

report you " Dad's reply: " You now know what both her mother and

her father look like. Just because she doesn't look like the fat

pigs you usually see around here (location withheld <g> ) that

doesn't mean we aren't feeding her. " Me - I'd have ditched this doc

so fast it would have made his head spin, as I did to another doc in

this community.

Re the location - a number of people I know have made the comment

that you don't want to go to Meijer's (large discount variety/grocery

store)on Saturday morning - the number of 'widebodies' will make you

ill.

The 'norm' is now totally warped, both in 'normal' body dimensions

and 'normal' food consumption. Those practicing the most extreme CR

may (speak up out there) be reacting to the influence these

industries (fast/processed food) have had on themselves, their

families, and the general public. I often find it easier to avoid

eating what I know I shouldn't eat by staying away from it

altogether, i.e. I'd rather not go to a pizza place and order salad,

although I've often done so. If I'm with a group, we can order less

pizza per person, and I'll eat mostly salad, and couple of small

pieces of pizza. Horrors!

I'd rather go to a place less fixated on high-fat, high-starch and

order salad. (Panera bread is currently a favorite for the once-a-

week lunch with co-workers - low fat veggie soup, and salad.) Even

if you plan on taking most of a restaurant meal home with you, the

wait-person is going to hover and ask if your food is OK if you are

boxing most of it. The enormous portions they serve (because the

cost of the food is really a minimal part of the total cost of a

meal, unless you're eating something extremely exotic) are designed

to make you feel you're getting value for your money.

The discussion about whether we have any evidence that CR works in

people often neglects the Okinawan experience, although it was

mentioned in an earlier message in this thread. Their diet is not

what the more extreme CR population would have you believe is ideal -

too much starch. But also relatively low fat, low sugar, high

veggie, some fish, and including some soy (yes, I know that's

controversial). But it works for them. Maybe the concern is that

for most of us CR has started fairly late in our lives, compared to

the Okinawans, so you should be more extreme about it, but that's

just the way it is.

I'm looking for a quality long-ish life, which begins, in Walford's

terms with 'preventing what is going to kill (or disable) you'

(approximate - don't have my 'bible' at my elbow to quote from

<g> ). Any extension beyond that is gravy. And trying to atone for

long-past sins is probably futile.

Iris