No. See how easy that was? Thanks for reading and I’ll see you next month.
I’m kidding.
But seriously – the reason I felt compelled to write about this is because it has come to my attention that the word “organic” seems to translate into “all you can eat” for many people out there. This isn’t the case and can end up doing more harm than good.
I’m sure you remember the good old days back in the dark ages when fat-free was all the rage. I know I do. I remember feeling extremely guilty over snarfing down an entire box of cookies while a friend of mine comforted me about the fact that “they were FAT- FREE”…yet I didn’t feel any better.
And this is why.
When we aren’t at peace with ourselves, food can become our friend, yet from this perspective it does more harm than good because we tend to rely on it to fill a void. Back in the day when fat was the supposed problem, we thought that by removing that factor…all would be just dandy. Instead, it only promoted further abuse since we thought we were behaving responsibly because the culprit (fat) was removed.
So let’s fast forward to the current ‘trend’: organics.
Organic foods, in a nutshell, means that foods are grown and produced without added pesticides and/or chemical fertilizers. It represents a method of care that goes into how our food is brought to us, and since (most) of us would prefer not to consume poison, this idea can certainly seem appealing. However, organic is NOT calorie-free nor does it mean go ahead and eat this whole bag of chips because the USDA stamped its approval on the package". Overeating comes from a place of emotional need and turmoil. It’s the abuse of food…regardless of the ingredients.
You see, we’re smart enough to know how to manipulate reality to suit our desires. We look for permission slips to allow harmful behaviors to become acceptable. Fat-free, organic, natural, etc. are simply labels we have come to rely on in order to enable running from whatever it is within us that’s too painful to deal with. It’s looking for something outside of ourselves to feel better, and it only prolongs facing the truth…whatever that is.
Make sense?