I also dropped sodas and artificial sweeteners (said to be evil). I switched to an all-natural deodorant versus the evil antiperspirants with aluminum. If all this results in nothing, my original thoughts will have been vindicated. If not, and I experience some appreciable difference, I may consider the increase in price as worth it.

Has anyone done a major overhaul like this, one month to the next? If so, what was your experience? I am also suspicious of a placebo effect with this diet. By this, I mean that people want and expect a difference and thus feel one where it really doesn’t exist. Convince me otherwise, please.

One of my goals for this year is to find local markets and start eating things seasonally, like I was able to do easily when overseas. The problem is that here in the US we are accustomed to so much choice, and gosh darn it if we want mangoes and strawberries in the winter we just buy them at the supermarket. The entire way our food system works is totally unsustainable (in my opinion, although I’m sure there is science behind that), and yet due to my student budget, I continue to support it. I miss being able to walk to the market and buy fresh, locally produced vegetables at reasonable prices like I was able to do abroad. I miss the excitement of seeing broccoli at the market for the first time every year. If we weren’t so used to having whatever we want, when we want and prepared for us, it would be much easier to change the system.

Oh and I loved this line: “At that price the pips should be semi-precious stones, and the grapes should come with a free servant trained in the ancient art of palm frond fanning.”

Fertilizer and pesticides. Be careful to use all the science available before deciding that all fertilizer if it doesn’t come from a plant or animal is going to be bad for you.
There are many natural products that will kill you–including salt in large quantities.
Fertilizers and pesticides have changed over the last 20 or even 10 years. There may be little or no residue in the plant you eat. Again check all the science.
Have you seen what a European Corn Borer will do to a corn field? Of course we could give up all corn and all the other things we use or eat that are corn based.
We don’t actually need to eat beef. Although I don’t think Michael Pollen would suggest to never eat meat again of any sort–just less. That’s OK since, if you look at our teeth they are not the teeth of meat eaters.

But, I can’t grow soy beans so I can’t make tofu. So that form of protein is out.
Maybe I can grow lentils.

It would be nice if we could dig up parking lots and highways and houses and get back all the agricultural land we had 100 or 50 years ago and plant it and grow enough fruits and vegetables to feed our country and feed it sustainably. Who will work the fields? What fuel will be used in processing? packaging? shipping? storing?

I don’t think it’s a good idea to just throw out all modern kinds of solutions. I don’t believe that all large companies plot to do bad things to us in food form. I don’t think they sit around thinking that they want to make the world a worse place.
I think we need to have dialogues with all sides of the issues and find a place of balance.

We can believe all we want that everything about food 100 years ago was better.

I forgot – I could eat ice cream. But I want to see the farm and see what the cow is eating and find out what’s in the soil and air where she lives.
Last week I saw free range chickens eating road kill. I think I can live with vegetables.

Sometimes, I’ll accidentally buy a random organic tomato, but I’m a poor recent college grad, so organic food isn’t my top priority at the moment.