Some random thoughts on the topic of helping people eat healthier, as we develop resources for providers to share:

I think a lot of the problem with people not eating healthy has to do with the perception that people are “too busy” to cook. How long does it actually take to whip up something healthy versus to gather the kids in the car, drive to a fast food place, order food, grab food to eat there or on the way and to drive home? 30 minutes or so? Pizza delivery also takes about 30 minutes. A healthy meal can be prepared n that timeframe, IF you have the ingredients on hand, IF you have planned your meals (even just a little), and IF you have the knowledge and skills to prepare the food in a safe, healthy way.

I find that basic cooking skills are severely lacking – I had a customer at the farmers market throw an entire box of potatoes away because she found a single little brown spot on one of them. When I told her (after refunding her) that she could have cut out that spot and used the rest, she responded, “How did I know it wasn’t putrid and dangerous to eat?” My gut reaction was to think, ‘good grief, everyone knows that!’ but obviously that isn’t true.

I guess one of my points is, that healthy eating isn’t all about knowing WHAT to eat – but it’s committing yourself, your time and energy, not to mention your money, to making that happen. It’s learning cooking, planning, time management, budgeting, and more. It’s having the correct mindset for success.

Families with children fall into the trap of “my kid only eats fries and nuggets so that’s what I feed them” mentality. Parents need help very early in their kids’ lives to learn strategies to encourage healthy eating. It’s possible for kids to like kale – I know, because my kids do!

Another thing that I don’t think the general public understands is how addictive sugar really is. When you don’t have it in your diet, you don’t crave it as badly. But add a little in (often hidden in so-called “healthy” foods like salad dressing), and you crave more and more.

There’s an underlying dynamic for a lot of people (some with depression, some just having low self esteem) having to do with their worthiness for positive change. People to understand that they are WORTH the effort of eating well, of exercising, and of improving themselves. So many of my friends/colleagues have just given up – “what’s one more donut if I’m already this big?” mentality.

Looking forward to the great work of this group!