Guest Post by Dr. Brian Schneider of www.drbrianswellnesscenter.com
For many people, healthy junk food appears to be an oxymoron. In other words, you can’t have both even though it seems like a good idea… The great dilemma however, we face everyday, is we must choose between eating from the neck up or neck down.
When we choose to eat from the neck up, as most of us do, we are only concerned about what tastes good, smells good, looks good and feels good. This is exactly why junk food is the largest addiction in America (over $150 billion annually), why we also spend billions of dollars on drugs that make us feel good, cigarettes and alcohol even though we know they aren’t healthy for us.
Living from the neck down means we are focused on our vital organs such as the liver, pancreas, kidneys, heart,etc and we are very concerned about fuel and nutrition. We know this is the best way to live and the healthiest way to live,but we don’t do it because it’s boring and takes too much effort. We don’t want to deny ourselves of the pleasures associated with living from the neck up.
Can’t we have both? Can’t we be healthy and enjoy our lives. Is wellness and fun really possible at the same time? The answer is YES. There are great food ideas like a juice with healthy vegetables such as wheat grass, kale and spinach and delicious fruits, such as bananas, berries and watermelons. Blended together, a delicious and nutritious juice can be achieved. How about a Greek yogurt with goat’s milk, honey, probiotics and high antioxidant chocolate, or a high protein, natural and healthy bar during the day? These are just some of the great ideas for healthy junk food where your taste buds are satisfied and the rest of your body will be very satisfied, as well as help you stay trim.
When you consider the extreme price of sickness today (financial, high divorce, medical problems, and early death) and the omnipotent presence of junk food and unhealthy restaurants, not to mention, overwhelming deceptive advertising and marketing, it makes sense to focus on something that we have demonstrated we want and will do, but is also going to be something we need,…..badly. Healthy junk food’s time has come. It is a new way of looking at and purchasing the food we want and the food we need. It is possible to have it both ways.
B.F. Skinner, the famous psychologist from Harvard University, stated that results are best achieved when using positive reinforcement not negative reinforcement. Dieting, weight loss programs and the stigma of obesity in America all utilize negative reinforcement to fatten the wallets of manufacturing companies, diet centers and unscrupulous medical companies that prey on junk food addicts and the millions of Americans who have depleted self esteem and feel hopeless because negative reinforcement has left them paralyzed, broke and fat.
Skinnerian psychology espouses it is important to see the glass as half full, not half empty. It is better to focus on gain and possibilities rather than an inability to live up to society’s standards. Healthy Junk Food is one way to have what you want and need. It is a practical approach to a $150 billion annual addiction, that happens to be the largest addiction in America.