Because I think God wanted you to eat healthy

I think we’ve all heard by now that, give or take, our planet is the perfect distance from the sun. Much closer would be too hot. Much farther, too cold.

In either case, life couldn’t exist. While apparently perfect, even on this planet, we need oxygen to breathe, but there are plants to make it. And we need some way to get that oxygen to our brains and all our tissues, but we’ve got red blood cells and hearts just the perfect size to pump them there. And those hearts, we don’t even have to tell them to do it. They just do it.

We just have to fuel them. And as luck would have it, there’s a perfect system for that, too. A perfect, but complex system that breaks down protein, fat and carbohydrates. And to get those proteins, fats and carbs, all we have to do is pluck an apple from a tree. Or blackberries from a bush. Or even eggs out from under a chicken.

I don’t think it’s too controversial to say that God did all of this. That a grand designer, with infinite wisdom and knowledge put us exactly where we needed to be with exactly what we needed to survive.

We’re all on board with living in Earth’s average temperature of 57F, compared to Mars’ -81F or Mercury’s 354F, but on food we think we can do it better. 

Here’s an example.

I can walk out my back door right now and pick a handful of alpine strawberries (pictured). I didn’t plant them; I didn’t water them; all I did was pick them and wash them and throw them in my mouth, and I’m rewarded not only with a pretty satisfying sweetness, but an endless list of nutrients and antioxidants, as well as a little bit of fuel to power my body.

With the same amount of effort, I could pop open a bag of Oreos, and pretend like I’m going to eat just one. The super processed sugars will quickly soak in through my digestive tract, get shot right into the pleasure centers in my brain, and quickly I’m locked in this loop of “Ok, just one more Oreo.”

Quickly, at roughly 50 calories per cookie, I’ve hit and sped past 200 calories, and they’re calories that are pretty empty.

The handful of strawberries is roughly 50 calories, too, but in addition to feeling like I only need to eat one handful, I’m also getting vitamin C, calcium, vitamin K and a whole bunch of other stuff that promote insulin sensitivity, which helps protect me from diabetes, as well as stroke, cancer and others.

But you might say, well, vitamin C is great, but berries don’t have much protein. Sure, but a handful has roughly the same amount as an Oreo

So what does it mean to me to eat religiously? 

I’d say it means that, like everything else, God designed food pretty well. If all you have to do is pick something and wash it, it’s probably pretty good for you. And in the case of blackberries, blueberries, tomatoes, etc., there are few things better.

Beyond that, the less you have to mess around with food the better.

Like eggs. Boil them or scramble them, that’s pretty easy, and pretty nutritious.

The conversation with meat becomes a bit more complex. Slaughtering chickens and beef, etc., is a pretty involved process, and there’s constant research weighing the benefits of lean red meat vs. the possible elevated risk of stroke, some kinds of cancers and other dangers, but there are few things healthier than a simply grilled chicken breast of salmon steak. 

And on other hand, it might be pretty interesting (terrifying?) to see how many steps it takes to get from farm to table for Oreos, Cheetos, and other food products with unidentifiable origins.

To be sure, I also believe God wanted us to enjoy life, too, so a treat here and there, won’t hurt, but for everyday purposes, I’d say pick the strawberry over the Oreo.

We’ve been given everything we need. Sometimes it’s best not to over complicate things.