Overcoming Junk Food Consciousness
From author Michael Ellsberg on his Facebook page in response to New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s big gulp ban and the pushback photographed above:
[...]
There is a complex of consciousness that arises from consuming lots of refined sugar, which I call “Junk Food Consciousness”.
The main features of Junk Food Consciousness are: foggy thinking; irritability; low, depressed mood; low energy; pessimistic thoughts; and inability to escape ANTs (automatic negative thoughts).
All of this is so depressing, that people caught in Junk Food Consciousness then drink lots of coffee (or a 24oz sugar-laden Red Bull!) to wake up and get some energy. And then they’re so wired and stressed by the end of the day, they need to go out and drink a few beers with their friends to “blow off steam.” And then they wake up groggy and hung over, so they go to the psychopharmacologist (or just their general practitioner) and pop some Prozac or Zoloft for their low mood…
And pretty soon, they’re not just in Junk Food Consciousness, they’re in Junk Food-Coffee-Red Bull-Beer-Prozac-Zoloft Consciousness…
Which is a really fucking ugly place. Trust me. I know, because I’ve been there. (Read my Forbes piece about overcoming Bipolar II) Thank goodness I got myself out.
Clearing my mind of Junk Food Consciousness (by clearing my body of junk food, coffe, and alcohol) felt like a clearing of the skies- it felt like fog and thunderclouds and storms lifting, and sunny, clear fresh sky entering.
In his book “The Ultra-Mind Solution” (in my opinion the best book ever written on the connection of nutrition and consciousness), Mark Hyman, M.D., writes:
“If you drink twelve cups of coffee a day, or eat half a pound of sugar a day (the amount consumed by the average American), or have an inflamed brain from eating gluten, it is very difficult to talk [via psychotherapy] or mediate your way out of suffering. I believe you must address the biological causes of the problems first, before psychotherapy can be effective. Fix your biology. Then get psychotherapy and do your soul work.”
Think about what Dr. Hyman is saying, for a moment. He’s saying that the *average* American, cannot even begin to do real personal growth work–in fact, cannot even derive benefit from psychotherapy–because of the amount of effectively-toxic junk they are putting into their system each day, which is fogging up and clouding up their minds and souls.
[...]
I am completely, passionately pro-democracy. And I am against paternalistic Nanny-State laws like Bloomberg’s, which tell people, by government mandate, what they can and cannot put into their bodies.
But, times like these show the dark side of democracy and freedom. People are free to completely cloud up their consciousness, and sell the tools of clouding consciousness (32oz Pepsi bottles and so forth), and make ads promoting the clouding of consciousness, and stuff their kids’ faces and throats with cloudy-consciousness delivery mechanisms (i.e., candy, soda, Froot Loops, etc.)…
Make a point to read the whole thing and subscribe to get Michael’s updates. Here’s his piece about overcoming Bipolar II at Forbes, also worth reading.
I had a related exchange also on Facebook this morning with my friend Duane Lester, editor at Liberty News and regular contributor here at PJ Lifestyle, when he shared this image:
One aspect of eating better that isn’t mentioned enough: it doesn’t need to be either/or and there’s no rush to immediately abandon sugar and junk food. I’ll eat burgers and still consume more junk food than I should. But those cravings’ strength seems to diminish as my body drifts away from foods that don’t digest as well.
How about this for a rule of thumb: eat what you want, just be aware of the positives as well as the negatives. Is sugar’s energy burst worth the price we pay in unhappiness? Is that Taco Bell worth the 20 minutes spent in the bathroom the next morning?
And seriously: the homemade juice works.
“Eat right, live well, die anyway.”
Nobody is getting out of here alive. But that doesn’t mean you should not try to muck with the timing.
The timing of what? Your death? Where’s your death clock?
Life is short. Live hard, eat well, and never go to the grave looking clean and pretty but dirty with your fist up clutching a sign reading “Hot DAMN that was fun!”
“Good health is merely the slowest rate at which one can die.” — author unknown.
Oh, come on. My dear Ma (who just celebrated her 64th birthday) drinks coffee by the gallon, and she’s as sweet as sweet can be.
Though choking back on the sugar and trying more fruit and juice might be a good idea.
Make my coffee with fresh milk, no sugar, please.
Swindle. That figures.
Talk to a nutritionist, most fruit juice, even fresh-squeezed with no sugar added is vastly overrated. And the OJ that most Americans consume as part of their morning routine has as much sugar in it as soda, if not more. I did a casual search for calorie conversions and found that Tropicana Original OJ has 141 calories per 10 oz, whereas Coke has 121 calories per 10 oz.
This is why Nanny Bloomberg’s policies make absolutely no sense. I don’t see him trying to limit the size of the monster smoothies at Jamba Juice, but I’d be willing to bet a smoothie there is packed with as many calories as a sundae at B&R.
“I don’t see him trying to limit the size of the monster smoothies at Jamba Juice, but I’d be willing to bet a smoothie there is packed with as many calories as a sundae at B&R.”
I’ll take that bet. http://www.jambajuice.com/component/nutfacts
http://www.baskinrobbins.com/content/baskinrobbins/en/nutritioncatalog.html
Okay, maybe not a sundae, but there are plenty of items on the B&R list that come in way under some of the smoothies at Jamba for both calories and amount of sugar.
My point is not that people shouldn’t drink juice. If you like it, knock yourself out. But sugar is sugar and Jamba’s smoothies have as much sugar in them as sodas and ice cream, so why are they not being targeted by Bloomberg and the rest of the food police?
“sugar is sugar”
Sugar is not sugar. The sugar from a bunch of oranges I juice myself is not the refined sugar in a bottle of pop.
Fructose is just as bad, if not worse than refined sugar.
And the acid in orange juice is not a friend to your tooth enamel either.
That said, the culinary sainthood you’re striving for looks to me like just another eating disorder, where the ‘cure’ is the actual disease.
Certainly sugar in large quantities is terribly bad for you. But in the case of soda (versus juice or coffee, or what have you), it’s even worse. Several years ago, there was a study that demonstrated that one of the preservatives used in soda, Sodium Benzoate if I recollecr correctly, makes you up to five times more susceptible to developing Diabetes.
Here’s the problem: we let gov’t into the health care business, and suddenly everyone’s an expert on what you should or shouldn’t eat and drink. Not only that, they’re holier-than-thou and obnoxious about it, and they feel totally justified in passing judgement on everything from how you start your day, what you eat for lunch, to what you do or don’t drink to unwind from a day at work.
If I want juice in the morning instead of coffee, I’ll make that decision on my own. I don’t need a self-important PJ blogger with the delusions of self-importance and superior judgment born of youth telling me it’s better…because for me, it’s not. I’d sooner drink water than juice. A brief sugar buzz that adds calories I don’t need instead of caffeine, which adds none? No, thanks.
It’s bad enough we have brainwashed Atkins people telling us to abandon bread to clog our arteries with fat so we can die of heart attacks. I don’t need any additional advice when the common sense solution is a balanced diet and exercise. If that’s too boring and old fashioned for some people, that’s their choice – and none of my business.
“Self-important”? “Superior judgment born of youth”? How old do you think I am?
Not as old as I am.
Or maybe it’s just the impression I get from the way you write – that you’re convinced your opinion is not only irrefutable but vitally important to the universe, so much so that we’re hanging on the edge of our seats to hear about your opinion about even the most arcane of topics, like XX’s latest single (whoeever the hell they are). I don’t get that from any one else on this site.
Put it this way: when I started reading this, I wondered why the author thought I should care what he drinks for breakfast. Home-made juice instead of coffee? Really?. Then I marvelled at the self-congratulatory tone of describing how your body is “drifting away” from junk. Then I scrolled back to the top of the page to see who wrote it, and I thought, “Oh, OK…that explains it.”
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not perfect: I can be an opinioned, judgemental ass…and sometimes (OK, often) that comes through when I write. But I don’t respond with a “who, moi?” when someone calls me on it.
DRay: “Like!”
I eat a largely, plant-based diet of organic fruits and vegetables (a “Crunchy Conservative” as described in a previous post elsewhere on PJM recently). However, I abhor the pushy, holier-than-thou attitude that the left — and sometimes those on the Right — adopt. If asked, I may recommend a certain dietary lifestyle, but what people to choose to eat or drink is their own damn business — UNLESS I’m paying for your healthcare through my taxes!!
“that you’re convinced your opinion is not only irrefutable but vitally important to the universe”
Looks like you’ve seized on a handful of sentences and misjudged me. My opinion is in a constant state of flux as a I learn more. I am not dogmatic and while prone to arrogance as most writers are — it’s inherently arrogant to write as though anyone should care what you think (and to comment) — I try to be humble and learn from those who know more than I do.
But if you want your words to count more then I’d invite you to abandon the anonymity of a commenter’s handle. I put up my real name and picture because I stand by my words. And then I get insulted by people hiding behind anonymity.
Not old enough not to sound infantile.
“…opinion is not only irrefutable but vitally important to the universe…”
That’s pretty breathless for someone who is only giving his opinion on a news article. If you really are that old, why don’t you act your age?
“…I wondered why the author thought I should care…”
That is the whole point of this website. Writers post things they think their readers care about. If you don’t care about the topic, then why do you comment on it?
I’ve always been super self-moderated health conscience.
I drink my yucky green drink (soylent greeeeeeeeeeeen haha).
I work out really hard. I look super young for my age (I look 26 and I’m 46).
But, I allow myself some junk food once a a while (especially if I have PMS shaddup).
I eat all the salty food I want and I have low blood pressure (the blood pressure of a child or elite athlete).
I don’t smoke. I drink beer only (can’t handle wine or the hard stuff) and I’m in pretty tip top shape.
I have a burger and fries maybe once every three months? Pizza? Maybe once every six months.
Again, it’s about moderation.
I can’t drink much coffee any more. I used to be able to drink a whole pot a day. Now? I (oddly) am super hyper naturally and so coffee will actually put me to sleep (like a hyper child).
I’m trying to get comfortable in my own skin.
One of my worst issues is over-thinking everything to death and beyond (lmao).
Is there such a thing as ‘thinking in moderation?”
lol
Oh well.
I’m here and still alive.
I think the premis that diet can have an effect on emotional states may be true and there is certainly no harm in cutting back on the junk food, but while that may work for some, it may not for others. A relative of mine has been into healthy eating for years and has for years also suffered stomach troubles, vague aches and pains and depression. She first started out by trying to be a vegetarian but since she didn’t really know much about it she severely cut out protien, increased her carbs and consequently screwed up her blood sugar making a mess of her health for a while. She finally gave up on vegetarianism. Later, she cut out dairy products certain that she was lactose intolerant. After a while I asked how she was feeling. “Um,…better, yeah, better” as if she was still trying to convince herself that it was working. Then she got her gall bladder taken out and a few months later I asked if her tummy troubles were getting better. She answers slowly, “Um,…Yeah, …it’s better.” Again, she didn’t sound too sure. Now she’s gone gluten free and tries to only buy organic. She still feels bad physically and emotionally.
I’m not trying to discourage anyone from giving up junk food in an effort to help yourselves, just keep in mind that diet may help but it isn’t a magic bullet.
Dave, I suffered from the same phenomena until I started doing what Gary Taubes has suggested after reading “Good Calories, Bad Calories.” I’ve never looked back. (Here’s the short version of that book: http://www.amazon.com/Why-We-Get-Fat-About/dp/0307272702 ) “Carb Toxicity” was in fact, like perpetual, low-grade hangover. Metabolic pathways clogged with wastes (along with dehydration) are what cause hangovers, and carb overdose has a similar effect.
My Cholesterol numbers have always been exceptional and still are (65 HDL : 189 Total) so those of you who don’t have such good numbers will want to seek the advice of your physician before following this advice and especially only after understanding what Taubes explains about the different types of LDLs and which are harmful.
My coffee and eggs for breakfast are better for me than juice and toast, no matter what kind of juice, no matter what kind of toast. I’m glucose intolerant, a precursor of diabetes, and Parkinson’s runs in the family. My family history supports the study that found drinking caffeinated coffee delays the onset of Parkinson’s and lessens the severity upon onset. It sounds like your diet is working well for you, but I cringe any time someone announces that carbs are a better breakfast than protein.
Frankly,I am starting to think that there IS no “best diet” for everyone.I have come to think that it is less what you eat, than what you ARE. I have lots of relatives who died in their late 80s to late 90s who didn’t exercise all that much,drank beer,ate bacon and eggs for breakfast, or oatmeal and canned fruit,but the one thing they had in common was they were happy, content people,who didn’t let life’s tragedies and disappointments drag them down to misery and bitterness. And they were nonsmokers. On the other hand, I have a whole family of cousins who are ALL dead before the age of 60, all WERE smokers, and not very happy people. I have also had some vegetarian friends,and none of THEM seemed like happy people to me.
This is not a joke, it is the truth -
I cannot afford to eat fast food, not for at least 5 years.
I can make a plain sandwich with a small glass of soda for under a dollar. No chips, nothing else.. I even reuse the paper towel (as a napkin) from the day before if it has a clean spot. The cheapest I can go to fast food is to get something off the dollar menu, ask for water and nothing else. That with TAX costs me about $1.10 plus the cost of fuel to drive a few miles to get there, it is a bit too far to walk every day. I save just enough by doing this to pay for something else like laundry.
This is what you get when you allow DEMORATS to crap on our system. You get more people in poverty. And I see no way out. Oh and the computer I’m at is borrowed on some one else’s kind loan using his ISP connection.
When George Burns was in his mid 90′s a reporter came to do an interview with him. The reporter noted that the entertainer practically chained smoked cigars.
“I don’t want to be rude Mr. Burns” the reporter said, “but I was wondering what your doctor thinks of you smoking so many cigars?”
Burns pulled the cigar from his mouth, looked the reporter in the I and said “My doctor is dead.”
Langenbahn:
I would add a suggestion to read “Wheat Belly” by William Davis, M.D.
I stopped eating almost all foods containing wheat flour, while also limiting my intake of sugar, in mid-June. As of August 1st, I have lost ten pounds with great ease, although the first week was difficult. One of Davis’s premises is that when you eliminate wheat from your diet you are no longer subjected to its appetite stimulant properties and thereby, naturally, tend to consume, on average, 400 to 500 calories less per day. In practical terms, losing a pound a week is easily achievable.
YOU GOT TO BE KIDDING!
We’ll give up more freedom and liberty for……food??
You are 100% right about what all the sugar and chemicals will do to you. But how about we work on getting all the freedoms we have lost back.
And when that day comes how about we fight back meth and crack and all that even more life destroying poison first.
Sugars are essential to all organic life on earth. It is not poison. It requires more than simple sugars in diet to be healthy.
Krebbs cycle:
http://biology.about.com/od/cellularprocesses/a/aa082704a.html
A right-wing hippie. I’ve seen it all.
thanks for the link to Ellsberg.
Eh, I drink tea, both black and green, although I do allow myself one coffee on the weekends to fuel my housework. I was blessed to not have a super sweet tooth, so sugar has never been an issue. I look for 100% juice with no added sweetener. For protein, we’ve been living mostly on fish with chicken and occasionally pork to supplement for a long time now. And, we side our protein out with vegetables. My blood pressure sits right at normal (123/80), and I’m not exactly young. However, Obama’s economy has “blessed” us with a short grocery budget so that junk food is not something we can indulge in often.