Do something Friday

A hospital in Massachusetts color -coded its offerings in the cafeteria.  Red, yellow, green -- least to most healthy options.  What happened?

"About six months after the changes were made, the purchases of "red" label food decreased by more than 15 percent, and "red" beverages dropped by 39 percent. "Green" food and drink purchases increased, according to the study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine." -Katherine Harmon

Could it be that in our effort to educate ourselves about food choices we have overburdened ourselves with so much information that now we're stuck?

Is that why a simple formula (red, yellow, and green) works so well?  It doesn't require a lot of thought and if we  make more green choices than red ones we know we're all set? 

If you're one of those people who is continually up to date on the newest and best "super food" and find that you're still stressed out because you're not seeing the changes in your pant size you're hoping for, maybe it's time to stop reading about foods.

"Good" foods and "bad" foods change sides....all the time!  Remember when iceberg lettuce had no redeeming qualities so we were all encouraged to eat spinach or some other form of leafy green?  Well, shock of the world! Scientist isolated a compound in iceberg lettuce that promotes brain health -- so! It's off the bad list.

Those lists are arbitrary!  Get over it!!  Its time to go back to the basics.  Eat foods that your great grandma would consider food -- things that grow. (she would recognize milk -- she would not recognize protein powder!)   Eat those foods in a manner your great grandmother would approve(sitting down with a napkin on your lap).  Eat in portions your great grandma would serve you.  (Have you looked at the size of a dinner plate from that era?  I have salad plates bigger than that! -- we need to get back to that size plate not the jumbo platters, at home and when we eat out, we're routinely served on).

If you want to manage your weight, you're going to have to change your behaviors -- forever.  But we don't need to complicate it with lots of scientific research.  God gave you a brain capable of understanding common sense....and that's all weight management is.  Don't over think, don't over-research.  Just start making your common sense changes.