Nutrition and Religion and the University Student

[Outta Here]

Not sure how many of you know this, but I have a daughter who is studying in her second year at the University. She's a math major (actuarial sciences), but gets to take other honors courses to cover her "general ed."

This semester one of her courses is a nutrition class and they are doing a couple of individual presentations--on the nutrition topic of their own choosing (so long as it is unique from all the other students). My daughter's focus is on nutrition and how religion can play a role with it. In addition to studying the Adventist diet, she'll be looking at the Muslim diet, the Catholic diet, and so on and so forth. I think she said 5 religions in all.

I can hardly wait to hear how well it goes!

What do you suppose she'll find?!

[Igakusei]

That sounds like an interesting project!

[fccool]

It's very difficult to look at the issue of the diet objectively. Adventist generally have a great healthy diet message in theory, but in practice I find it very unballanced. I've certainly met plenty of families that are REALLY healthy in their food choices. They are certainly an inspiration. But, in general, I find that when people approach Adventist vegetarianism, they are approaching it with a very unbalanced perspective of "can and can't"... rather than "what's good and what's not".

Example... a piece of cheesecake is vegetarian. Probably not the best food choice though. That ends up trickling down to very simple choices of food... stuff like vege-meats, and etc.

My wife gained about 30 lbs since she became vegetarian, and she dropped it once she dropped the mentality. It's not about abstinence. It's about balance (although some food and drinks are worthy of abstinence).

I think that E.G. White would have gone mad if she attended an average potluck, or seen the stuff they sell at ABC and Adventist food stores.

[Gail]

More power to her! I'd be interested in knowing what she finds, too.

[Outta Here]

Agreed. I have a feeling she'll be looking at it from the theory standpoint and not the study of how it's commonly applied.

The really nice thing about this class, IMO, is that it's not my daughter's religion that's teaching it, nor her parents, or relatives. I'm hoping she'll end up with a balanced perspective on nutrition--not with the ideas of "can and cannot".

[John317]

I think she'll find some similarities between the SDA diet and the Muslim diet.

She will also no doubt find that SDAs would be better off if they followed Ellen White's counsels on diet more closely, such as cutting back on refined foods, and consuming far less junk foods & sugar, etc.

[Haldog]

Of course religion plays into diet in may ways but it would be interesting to do her study from a biblical/spiritual standpoint instead of religion.

[Igakusei]

I agree with everything fccool said. I remember making several non-SDA friends as they moved into SDA culture several years ago, and they were kind of... confused at the disconnect between the reasons SDAs are vegetarians and the actual diets they tend to eat.

Like, you get a sack lunch from the church school and it has oily potato chips, a chocolate chip cookie, some flavored sugar water, an orange, and a veggie sandwich.

That's not healthy! Taking the turkey out of your sandwich doesn't excuse all the junk food that so often goes with it.

[Tallmark]

She will also no doubt find that SDAs would be better off if they followed Ellen White's counsels on diet more closely, such as cutting back on refined foods, and consuming far less junk foods & sugar, etc.

and gave up the dairy!

[Outta Here]

Of course religion plays into diet in may ways but it would be interesting to do her study from a biblical/spiritual standpoint instead of religion.

Agreed, Haldog. However she does not attend an Adventist university (there are no Adventist universities that offer her particular course of study)-- so, doing a study based only on the bible wouldn't be appropriate for this class. Her study must include many different relgions.

It would be interesting if someone here wanted to do that study from a biblical/spiritual standpoint though.

[Outta Here]

No problem, dgrimm60!

[joeb]

It's very difficult to look at the issue of the diet objectively. Adventist generally have a great healthy diet message in theory, but in practice I find it very unballanced. I've certainly met plenty of families that are REALLY healthy in their food choices. They are certainly an inspiration. But, in general, I find that when people approach Adventist vegetarianism, they are approaching it with a very unbalanced perspective of "can and can't"... rather than "what's good and what's not".

Example... a piece of cheesecake is vegetarian. Probably not the best food choice though. That ends up trickling down to very simple choices of food... stuff like vege-meats, and etc.

My wife gained about 30 lbs since she became vegetarian, and she dropped it once she dropped the mentality. It's not about abstinence. It's about balance (although some food and drinks are worthy of abstinence).

I think that E.G. White would have gone mad if she attended an average potluck, or seen the stuff they sell at ABC and Adventist food stores.

I really don't understand your objection here. It's like objecting to the advice to get regular exercise because some people go overboard with it. They run until their knees give out, get stress fractures, or get into steriods so they'll "look" healthier, etc....

The SDAs who eat sweets/junk_food/empty_caloric_diets, high fat diets, etc... rather than healthy food aren't following the health message given them by God through Ellen White. She warns of the problems created by eating lots of sugar too. She also warns about fatty foods too, i.e. cheese, cooking with lard(lots of fats).

Ellen White says we need to cultivate our taste buds to like the healthy foods. How many people follow that advice?

Is the message wrong because it isn't followed by everyone? I don't think so.

[joeb]

I agree with everything fccool said. I remember making several non-SDA friends as they moved into SDA culture several years ago, and they were kind of... confused at the disconnect between the reasons SDAs are vegetarians and the actual diets they tend to eat.

Like, you get a sack lunch from the church school and it has oily potato chips, a chocolate chip cookie, some flavored sugar water, an orange, and a veggie sandwich.

That's not healthy! Taking the turkey out of your sandwich doesn't excuse all the junk food that so often goes with it.

No honest person says it does.

How many professed Christians put God first in everything they do? The majority or the minority?

[fccool]

Quote:

I really don't understand your objection here. It's like objecting to the advice to get regular exercise because some people go overboard with it. They run until their knees give out, get stress fractures, or get into steriods so they'll "look" healthier, etc....

I don't quite understand why you see it as an objection? My only objection is to unhealthy and unbalanced approach to diet which results from seeing the food from "can't eat this", instead of "this one is less healthy than other avaliable choices"

Quote:

The SDAs who eat sweets/junk_food/empty_caloric_diets, high fat diets, etc... rather than healthy food aren't following the health message given them by God through Ellen White. She warns of the problems created by eating lots of sugar too. She also warns about fatty foods too, i.e. cheese, cooking with lard(lots of fats).

I'm not in disagreement here. I think I've mentioned that she would go ballistic at one of our potlucks

Quote:

Ellen White says we need to cultivate our taste buds to like the healthy foods. How many people follow that advice?

The question of nutrition is much more complex in our day and time. The "unhealthy food" in her day is miles away from unhealthy food we have today. Not even compares.

I grew up in a country where people eat frozen pig fat instead of butter, but due to their overall complex and natural diets, they fair much better than Americans do on both obesity, diabetes, and cancer scales. I certainly don't avocate eating frozen pig lard, but the reality is that Americans eat junk that's far worse when we consider its overall nutritional composite as a diet.

The same goes for Adventists and emphasis on vegetarianism. People approach it from "I can't eat that", rather as "It's the best food choice on the table".

Quote:

Is the message wrong because it isn't followed by everyone? I don't think so.

I don't believe that I ever said that it was wrong. I just mentioned that the approach is unbalanced and impractical in terms of universal availability of healthy food that's both vegetarian and healthy. Just because it's vegetarian, does not mean it's healthy. I think we can agree on that.

Our friends move to Brazil, and they had to abandon veganism for their stay there, because there was no healthy alternatives as country is sustained primarily on meat diet.

I'm all for ideal diet. No objections there, but it has to have a balanced approach with "exit strategies" when ideal food is not available, in which case people should choose the best possible choices... vegetarian or not. That's a realistic and practical health message.

[skyblue888]

fcool, Do you mean to say that Ellen's message on health reform was unbalanced? I have studied it and I did not find anything unbalanced. How much time have you spent studying that message if you don't 'mind me asking?

sky

[skyblue888]

I agree with everything fccool said. I remember making several non-SDA friends as they moved into SDA culture several years ago, and they were kind of... confused at the disconnect between the reasons SDAs are vegetarians and the actual diets they tend to eat.

Like, you get a sack lunch from the church school and it has oily potato chips, a chocolate chip cookie, some flavored sugar water, an orange, and a veggie sandwich.

That's not healthy! Taking the turkey out of your sandwich doesn't excuse all the junk food that so often goes with it.

Sad but true.

sky

[phkrause]

fcool, Do you mean to say that Ellen's message on health reform was unbalanced? I have studied it and I did not find anything unbalanced. How much time have you spent studying that message if you don't 'mind me asking?

sky

Sky, a number of years ago my daughter wanted to join a gym but she was not old enough to join. She needed my signature. So I went over and checked it out. Short story my wife and I wound up joining instead of her and her friend. The first time I weight myself I couldn't believe my weight. So as I started doing the exercises, one thing I did was ride this lifecycle machine. It gave me time to read a book, so I decided to read "Councils of diets and foods." As I read the book I realized that all these principles I knew but didn't do. So I stopped eating between meals, I started eating a big breakfast, smaller lunch and just a very small supper. Just fruits, etc. Well needless to say I lost around 50 lbs. Her book is about a lifestyle change not just a diet. I have found that in the past 10 years or so since doing this many diets and lifestyle changes that I've heard and read are as if they read her book. I for one would recommend the book to whoever asks, and I have.