4 ms·

I disagree with the idea that a plant based diet is healthier than one that includes meat.

YeGoblynQueenne 7y ago
But the above comment suggests a varied diet "leaning" towards plant-based foods, not a plant-based diet. That's the standard recommendation for a healthy diet from pretty much every public health body, currently.
- village-idiot 7y ago
  Given the utter collapse of western health since the 1970s, the recommendation of “pretty much every public health body” carries no weight for me.
  - bardworx 7y ago
    I’m not sure I follow: I believe the person you are replying to is encouraging eating a diverse set of foods, including meat, per some health body guidelines. You also seem to believe that eating meat, not only fruits/veggies/vegan, is good. Wouldn’t that make you in agreement with the current system of balanced intake?
    - village-idiot 7y ago
      Leaning towards plant based is far too close to the “meat is bad, minimize it” camp for my taste. I think meat is not only good for humans, but strictly necessary for healthy development and functioning. In my assessment we aren’t eating enough high quality (important caveat) meat.
      - YeGoblynQueenne 7y ago
        I think you're misidentifying the comment we're discussing as having some kind of political affiliation that you disagree with.
        village-idiot 7y ago
        I’m not sure how you got to politics from what I said.
        YeGoblynQueenne 7y ago
        Apologies for the confusion- I meant an affiliation with veganism and vegetarianism. I think of those as political views.
        deleted 7y ago
        [deleted]
  - YeGoblynQueenne 7y ago
    I dont' know what you mean about "the utter collapse of western health". Public health organisations are staffed by experts who have spent most of their lives studying the relevant subjects. How likely is it that you, or anyone who hasn't dedicated that much time and effort in studying those subjects, will know better than those who have? I'm not saying it's impossible, mind. But just what are the chances that your opinion is right and that of thousands of experts is wrong?
    - village-idiot 7y ago
      It’s easy; evaluate based on the results. Since the 1970s the US government and other public health organizations has attempted tell Americans what to eat more of, and what to eat less of. Nearly 50 years later we can take a step back and realize that Americans are fatter, sicker, and weaker than they were before then. There have been some successes, we are now very good at catching CVD early, and should you have a heart attack you are now much more likely to survive than before. But on the food front, what we’re talking about here, it has been a complete and unmitigated disaster. Because of that, I don’t trust public health officials one iota when it comes to food and diet. That doesn’t mean I’m right, but I know that they have a track record of failure and unintended consequences.
      - YeGoblynQueenne 7y ago
        I don't know that you can attribute bad eating habits to the recommendations of public health organisations. Perhaps the public is just not following those recommendations? My understanding is that processed foods and sugary drinks are consumed in great numbers, but that is certainly not in accordance with the recommendation of any public health organisations that I know of. Also, as far as I know, public vaccination programmes have greatly reduced, and almost eliminated many diseases like measles, tetanus and typhoid, not just in the US but the world over, although of course measles is making a comeback. Are you perhaps drawing a conclusion about public health bodies in western countries in general, from an experience with health services in the US? The US seems to be very peculiar in how it treats public health. I live in the UK and I wouldn't say that the national health service (the NHS) has collapsed. It has its problems and it's being attacked constantly but for the time being, it's working fine. The same is true for most central European countries.

But the above comment suggests a varied diet "leaning" towards plant-based foods, not a plant-based diet. That's the standard recommendation for a healthy diet from pretty much every public health body, currently.

village-idiot 7y ago
Given the utter collapse of western health since the 1970s, the recommendation of “pretty much every public health body” carries no weight for me.
- bardworx 7y ago
  I’m not sure I follow: I believe the person you are replying to is encouraging eating a diverse set of foods, including meat, per some health body guidelines. You also seem to believe that eating meat, not only fruits/veggies/vegan, is good. Wouldn’t that make you in agreement with the current system of balanced intake?
  - village-idiot 7y ago
    Leaning towards plant based is far too close to the “meat is bad, minimize it” camp for my taste. I think meat is not only good for humans, but strictly necessary for healthy development and functioning. In my assessment we aren’t eating enough high quality (important caveat) meat.
    - YeGoblynQueenne 7y ago
      I think you're misidentifying the comment we're discussing as having some kind of political affiliation that you disagree with.
      - village-idiot 7y ago
        I’m not sure how you got to politics from what I said.
        YeGoblynQueenne 7y ago
        Apologies for the confusion- I meant an affiliation with veganism and vegetarianism. I think of those as political views.
        deleted 7y ago
        [deleted]
- YeGoblynQueenne 7y ago
  I dont' know what you mean about "the utter collapse of western health". Public health organisations are staffed by experts who have spent most of their lives studying the relevant subjects. How likely is it that you, or anyone who hasn't dedicated that much time and effort in studying those subjects, will know better than those who have? I'm not saying it's impossible, mind. But just what are the chances that your opinion is right and that of thousands of experts is wrong?
  - village-idiot 7y ago
    It’s easy; evaluate based on the results. Since the 1970s the US government and other public health organizations has attempted tell Americans what to eat more of, and what to eat less of. Nearly 50 years later we can take a step back and realize that Americans are fatter, sicker, and weaker than they were before then. There have been some successes, we are now very good at catching CVD early, and should you have a heart attack you are now much more likely to survive than before. But on the food front, what we’re talking about here, it has been a complete and unmitigated disaster. Because of that, I don’t trust public health officials one iota when it comes to food and diet. That doesn’t mean I’m right, but I know that they have a track record of failure and unintended consequences.
    - YeGoblynQueenne 7y ago
      I don't know that you can attribute bad eating habits to the recommendations of public health organisations. Perhaps the public is just not following those recommendations? My understanding is that processed foods and sugary drinks are consumed in great numbers, but that is certainly not in accordance with the recommendation of any public health organisations that I know of. Also, as far as I know, public vaccination programmes have greatly reduced, and almost eliminated many diseases like measles, tetanus and typhoid, not just in the US but the world over, although of course measles is making a comeback. Are you perhaps drawing a conclusion about public health bodies in western countries in general, from an experience with health services in the US? The US seems to be very peculiar in how it treats public health. I live in the UK and I wouldn't say that the national health service (the NHS) has collapsed. It has its problems and it's being attacked constantly but for the time being, it's working fine. The same is true for most central European countries.