Good luck!

Let me begin by saying that I took a nutrition course during my senior year of college, and it helped me more than any “fad book” possibly could. Speak to the people who are the most physically fit, and the story is more or less the same: eat a well-balanced diet and exercise moderately. It’s a timeless formula…because it WORKS. I am so incredibly sick of everyone allowing themselves to have this crap spoon-fed to them and changing their entire lifestyle because a couple of skinny women decided it was “life-threatening” to eat processed foods and meat. I read the book, and I’ve never felt such a brain-washing attempt at making a person feel guilty for eating normal foods in my life. I mean, is this what American society has become? We have nothing better to worry about than how horrible it is to eat animals and dairy food? It seems that no matter what the “hip” thing to do nutritionally is, people continue to allow one or two people dictate what is good and bad about certain foods, while completely discounting the concept of common sense. I mean, in the 80s, saturated fat became the devil, in the 90s it was carbs, and now it’s processed foods. It will never stop, people. There’s always going to be a book or TV show or magazine article or celebrity-endorsed product like “The Zone” that will tell you what to eat and what not to eat. Sure, it’s going to make perfect sense while you’re reading it and you may rationalize your way through it, but that’s just the work of a well-written book. I bet I could write an equally persuasive book about the benefits of consuming mass amounts of alcohol, and (if the marketing behind it were executed effectively) I’m sure I could have millions of people following suit. Why is everyone always looking for “THE answer” to all their nutritional issues, without holding themselves accountable for their own bad eating habits? Face it: if you’re fat or you feel crappy all the time, it’s probably because you’re not eating healthy foods and you’re not exercising enough. It’s not about “processed foods” and meat; it’s about common sense. The food pyramid wasn’t something that was arbitrarily made up; it was a concept that was implemented and backed up by years of scientific research and studies. I was overweight for most of my life, and it was because I didn’t think twice about eating junk food. Well, I started eating low-fat foods, exercising regularly, and now I’ve dropped 30 pounds. It’s about lifestyle changes, and also about not depriving yourself of an occasional craving. If I want a piece of cake now and then, I tell myself “I’m going to eat this piece of cake, and I’ll just work out more tomorrow.” Once again, common sense. I find it hilarious that these two women who wrote this book have never been overweight a day in their lives, yet they claim they have the secret to a healthier lifestyle. I’m not going to discount the book’s sermons on veganism…if that’s your choice, good for you. I was never one to impose my beliefs on another. However, I cannot sit idly by and watch thousands of women (including a couple of my friends) alter their lifestyles completely due to something one or two people have said. Also, as far as the USDA ranting and bad-mouthing of the meat industry, I think it’s incredibly skewed and exaggerated. I think it’s yet another one of the social diseases that the U.S. suffers from, besides an unhealthy obsession with being super thin. I was born in Iraq and mostly raised here in the U.S., and it’s amazing how very little this sort of stuff comes up when your country is so economically devastated that you’ll take any sort of food you can get. Books like “Skinny Bitch” just serve to further illustrate my theory that Americans have waaaaaay too little to worry about these days and are splitting nutritional hairs. I’ll be damned if I’m going to let a couple of American women make me feel guilty for eating meat, when it’s a natural part of the food chain. Some of the healthiest people I know are meat eaters, and they feel wonderful due to the fact that they eat balanced diets and they exercise. God forbid that should include an occasional can of green beans, a glass of milk, a chicken breast, or a Lean Cuisine frozen dinner. *GASP* How dare they??

If people REALLY want to feel great about themselves, how about spending a little less time with your noses buried in a fad book and a little more time helping others like the homeless or less fortunate? You’d be surprised at how great you feel at the end of the day by taking a prescription for kindness. Millions of people are starving in other countries, while we’re turning our noses up at french fries, canned foods, and steak. I can’t help but wonder how “picky” Americans would be if food were more scarce. Somehow, I don’t think books like “Skinny Bitch” would be selling hundreds of thousands of copies. Next time you feel like spending a few dollars on making yourself feel better, try digging into your heart and helping another person, and thank your lucky stars that you even HAVE food to eat. Meat and dairy are not the epidemic our society is suffering from; rather, it’s self-righteousness and an obsession with trivialities such as processed foods that are the culprits.

I suppose if there’s one point that I’d like to drive home in this comment, it’s this: Take everything you read with a grain of salt and use some common sense rather than letting one book change your entire life. God gave us brains for a reason. Remember that good old thing called “independent thought?” Try it some time.

Ignorant? Yes I definitely was. A selfish whore though? I did not read this book to be insulted. If people’s attitudes are to be changed, this is not the way to it.

Also, please please please read The China Study – this book has changed my life.