by Dr. Sam Benjamin Eating is a source of joy, comfort, and nutrition. But excessive calories, processed foods, fats, soda, and other unhealthy choices predispose us to obesity, aging, and a host of health problems. Eating healthy, on the other hand, can help us have a long life and improve our well-being. Here are some things that get in the way of healthy eating.

If I stand in a fast food restaurant or I'm in a movie theatre, my will power gives way to the wonderful aromas around me. Just smelling the popcorn or the Angus steakburger is overpowering for me. That's true for many people. Overeating is an addiction - a very challenging one. And it doesn't help that we're bombarded by billboards, TV and print ads that constantly encourage us to eat foods high in carbohydrates, preservatives, and bad fats - all the ones that taste so good and satisfy our cravings.

Obesity has been on a rapid rise for the past two decades in the United States. The National Center for Health Statistics says that 30 percent of adults - more than 60 million people - are obese. And we've passed this legacy onto our kids; 16 percent of children and teens between 6 and 19 years old are overweight.

By overeating, and thus carrying around too much weight, we've set ourselves up for many serious health conditions, including:

• High blood pressure, cholesterol, and triglycerides
  
  
• Diabetes
  
  
• Heart disease and stroke
  
  
• Gallbladder problems
  
  
• Osteoarthritis
  
  
• Sleep apnea and respiratory problems
  
  
• Endometrial, breast, and colon cancers
  
  

Healthy eating doesn't mean just having a lean body. It means avoiding - as much as possible - processed foods, especially processed beef products, which are associated with higher rates of colorectal cancer.

Many processed foods contain salt and other preservatives, chemicals, pesticide residue, or color additives. For example, three-fourths of the salt we consume comes from processed foods. Salt is in canned goods, processed meat, cheese, bread, and more. Large amounts of salt are also in the food we eat at restaurants - especially in fast food and Chinese restaurants. We almost never eat a meal that doesn't use a processed food.

You probably can't avoid processed foods completely. But you can make conscious and wise choices by reading the food label, since about 90 percent of processed food has mandatory nutrition labeling for serving size, calories, total fat, and so on.

Look for low-salt options in cereals, crackers, pasta sauces, and canned goods. Replace many packaged foods with fresh fruits and vegetables.


Diet extremes don't work for most of us. Many of us would not do well with an extremely low-fat diet - such as The Pritikin Diet, which is based on vegetables, grains, and fruits and only allows for 10 percent of calories from fat. Sure, you'd lose weight. But you need fat in your diet to have a normal, healthy body. So while this and similar diets may show a reversal in heart disease, it's not recommended for healthy people. In fact, any extreme in diet will ultimately prove to be of limited value. We cannot hide from what our bodies require for good health.


It's not fat we eat that's the culprit. It is the kind of fat we eat, as well as how many calories those fat grams contain. We need some dietary fat to stay healthy and to have energy. Fats help us absorb the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K. On the other hand, fat has more than twice the number of calories as the same amount of carbohydrates or protein.

We should strive for a diet rich in Omega 3 fatty acids, with a favorable ratio of Omega 3 fatty acids to Omega 6 fatty acids. And substitute mono- and polyunsaturated fats for saturated fats.


Every day you're encouraged to increase your risk of disease - through nonstop messages from advertising, billboards, fast food restaurants, grocery stores, and television - and then you're encouraged to spend what's left of your income on health care to fix the damage.

You're probably really trying to eat healthy. Yet you still encounter additives in your food, chemicals in your water, and more messages encouraging you to eat unhealthy. You might even hear the subtle message that you have no responsibility to change your eating habits. I'm here to tell you: you do have a responsibility to eat healthy. And, I think, you'll enjoy it too!