Tuesday, December 30, 2008

A Question




If you knew
that all you had to do
to severely decrease
your chances
of getting

1. Heart disease.
2. Cancer.
3. Obesity.
4. Alzheimer's

was to
change your diet,
would you?

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I know where you're going with this and my answer is, No. I wouldn't change my diet to the degree that you have been studying. I believe in eating a reasonable diet where I eat things in moderation...and no, tofu does NOT fit in my diet! I like veggies and I eat many of them but I can't survive on plants alone. I need meat and dairy! If you're planning to go through with this diet thing, more power to you. I'm okay with eating food I like...even if it means I go see Jesus a little sooner!

Anonymous said...

I think quality of life needs to be considered here too. You could go on a diet (I mean any diet, like the grapefruit diet, etc.), but if you don't enjoy it, and you're miserable on it. Some people might say so what that I'm decreasing my chance of cancer...I'm miserable, and feel like I'm always missing out.

But the flip side to quality of life is, is it worth it if your body is degrading and you can't enjoy life because of something you could have done about it before? (ie: like change your diet?)

How about smoking?? Smokers have all the information about the damage it causes to the body and many refuse to quit knowing they'll be debilitated one day someway because of it.

just thoughts as usual.

Jacquie

Anonymous said...

Ok, so I don't make much sense, maybe I shouldn't think so hard when looking after 4 kids!!!!

My point is that you should enjoy life, and if you're motivated to change your lifestyle to increase your quality of life...WAY TO GO! No matter what the issue is!

Jac

Anonymous said...

Jacquie, you are very articulate! You said what I wanted to say in a much better way!

Michele

Mark said...

Interesting comments. I suppose if one is not dealing with the possibility of getting these in the near future, one doesn't have a lot of motivation to change one's diet. Discipline then, and the motivation to achieve it, are only possible when we have an urgent sense of what is in store for us soon. Perhaps a better way of asking the question would be to put it on a scale of 1 to 10. What level of change to your diet would you be willing to change if you knew you severely decrease your chances of getting all of those bad diseases? 1 is not at all and 10 is you would be totally willing to change.

For myself, as long as the scientific evidence is sound, I would put myself at about a 7. I have seen enough people die from cancer and heart attacks that I would be willing to change about 70% of my currently laisez faire diet. Like Jacquie noted, if you are miserable it would not be worth it - quality of life is sometimes as important as having life at all.