You are most welcome.

And I so hear you Tonia. This happens all too often. The average nutritionist or health professional still teaches according to the food guide and how to count calories, look for low fat options, and everything in moderation. Then I go around whether to clients in personal consults or in speaking engagements and try to un-teach all that and bring awareness to the real facts about our bodies and food – not the facts that are conveniently pushed upon us as numerous food companies, pharmaceutical organizations and doctors benefit from creating a “sick nation”.

Proper nutrition can be so simple, but today there is too much money and profit involved in too many of the food choices. I always tell people, broccoli, apples or any fresh fruit or vegetable does not need advertising. Be weary of anything that is advertised because that is where the biggest problems start. Someone out there is making lots of money from convincing us we need or want those products, while our health and weight, etc, suffers in the process.

Thank you so much for your feedback – it is so very much appreciated Tonia, as I know that people like you and me are still the minority. It is hard to undo all the conditioning that has been done about following the four food groups, insane amounts of protein and the need for dairy, just to name a few, but it is not impossible. More people like myself and like yourself are taking accountability for their own health and when we switch to the food choices you mentioned, our bodies respond and offer us all the proof we need that this is the way to go!

All the best with your continued health journey and don’t hesitate to contact me at anytime, should you have any questions, comments, etc…

Thank you for a great article and amazing comments and answers to reader questions!

Our company had a ‘health professional’ invited to present at a company event. “Eat Well, Live Well” topic was discussed word for word as a Canadian Food Guide suggests. I couldn’t believe the things that were recommended, it was very upsetting. Out of maybe 70 people I seemed to be the only one concerned and that disturbed me even more… People still trust and don’t see how they are openly and disrespectfully lied to. I have a lot of personal interest in holistic health, nutrition, exercise and last year changed to a raw, organic and vegan diet. Never felt better physically, emotionally and energetically!

Today I received the request for the event feedback and I was happy for the opportunity to provide an honest opinion, I hope it will be considered for the next event if repeated. In my comments I have also included the link to this article and wanted to thank you for making it available. I was very pleased to find it and use it as a credible source. Keep up an amazing work Evita!! I am very happy to have discovered your work.
Best wishes!

Yes, unfortunately there is a lot of control, and not of the right kind when it comes to food production, distribution and education. But when we all look into things for ourselves and embrace the bigger picture, we get to see through a lot of the biased hype.

“the world is in utter food chaos at the moment, and I can’t believe the mass amount of misinformation that corporations are feeding off of”

Amber there are a lot of things going on behind the scenes from a political standpoint that try to hide this. But natural health leaders today will not be silent. The truths are being brought out louder and louder, and more people are waking up and listening for the first time.

I am glad that you are a critical thinker, and as you said nothing drastic yet. Collect your data, as you research and make changes as you see fit.

One thing about the chocolate milk….read the ingredients…. and nutritional label. I think there is actually more sugar in that milk than fat, which is hard to believe given that it is milk. Oh yes I was there too.

If you do nothing but read your food labels, you will already be off to an amazing start where your health is concerned.

As for feeling good/bad. You are young and when it comes to food and our bodies, it isn’t like with some strong poison. You don’t eat a hamburger and than fall over dead or seriously sick. (If it were that fast, we wouldn’t have the problem we have) Anyhow, our bodies try to fight it and deal with it for years WITHOUT giving you any symptoms. But within slowly, things change, things get weaker, etc.

We think aging and diseases as we get older are normal. This is only the case because we are not connecting the dots yet, that poor food choices at 20, lead to poor health at 40.

So it all just depends on how one wants to invest in their future.

Something else that I find amusing is how many people pay money to life insurance companies, and how few ever put effort, never mind money into insuring good health for the future… but c’est la vie!

@ KOKO – Thanks so much for the feedback Koko! Yes, I think more and more people are seeing that indeed the food industry and drug industry have a lot of similarities…

Wow that is so awesome you gave up meat at 10! What an evolved child you must have been! And you are so right, many, many people are very confused, mislead and misguided when it comes to eating and the whole area of nutrition. And with so much info out there one may wonder why perhaps. But it is in my opinion because of how much conflicting info there is that people are so confused.

Congratulations on your journey to becoming a registered holistic nutritionist! I am sure with your knowledge, you will make a great one and help many people out there!

P.S. By the way I made another one of the “raw cheesecakes” and added blueberries into it, kept out the lime. It turned out great and I loved it, though my husband loved the original more ;)

@ HANLIE – Thanks so much Hanlie! Any info I can offer others to help where health and nutrition, and life happiness is concerned is my pleasure!

And I so agree with you, the same happened to me when I gave up those two groups. Today I am healthier than ever before, and I know I am building a strong body for the future years, not one that will be prone to decline and disease.

And yeah, I love that Honest Food Guide – it just says it straight up like it is :)

Another great post! I actually have a problem with the whole “food group” issue. Who says that food needs to be in groups? I’ve often read comments from supposed experts warning people about eliminating “whole food groups” and I just don’t buy the concept at all. I rarely eat from the meat group, the dairy group and the grain group and I am healthier than I’ve ever been! Fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds and legumes are doing me a world of good.

I like the honest food guide.

I stopped eating meat when I was quite young (10) out of my own personal choice. My family was not too happy with me as ‘what about my PROTEIN!?!?!’. Needless to say, I’ve survived! And I am quite healthy. Working to become a registered holistic nutritionist has only opened my eyes wider to the misinformation that is out there.

Lol, crazier things? I just found out there used to be a $2 bill, my mind has already been blown for the week… and now dairy, my precious dairy!? Given, I’ve never loved cheese (except on certain things)… but my chocolate milk? My yogurt?

But anyways, enough of that. You’re going to be mad at me, it’s 2am… my sleep schedule will be fixed *eventually*, it’s been messed up since exams.

But yes… back on topic. Jakki’s gonna lend me Skinny Bitch when she’s done, you’ve got her all health conscious too, hah. And yeah swearing, hah, heard way worse in my day.

Ah, the thing is. Even if you’re right. Which for argument’s sake (not to mention the million things you’ve cited to prove it) let’s say you are right. If you’re right, the world is in utter food chaos at the moment, and I can’t believe the mass amount of misinformation that corporations are feeding off of. It actually makes me sick. I hate money.

I can’t say I’m going to make any drastic changes to what I eat yet. To be honest, for the most part I feel fine unless I eat something absolutely horrid for me. I’ve made small changes, although seriously, having strong nails is probably the best thing ever. Baby steps.

I’m conflicted in short. Very conflicted. Like I went to my boyfriend’s house for dinner tonight and we had a “well-balanced” meal, and in my head… it’s like “Well, actually… chocolate milk, pasta, meat, is not good for you and the tomato sauce probably has salt.”

I don’t know… more research is in order.

- meat (all meat including fish)
- dairy (esp. milk)
- our personal care products
- pesticides
- genetically modified food
- water quality
(not to mention spiritual/religious views)

…it was mind blowing to say the least. In the last 5 years, I had to reshape, rethink and start from scratch almost all the paradigms and ideas that I had been lead to believe all this time!!! How’s that for feeling lied to…especially that you would expect schools, esp universities to teach you better. But most people Amber, 80% maybe 90% just live life, reciting the same stuff from one to another, never stopping to THINK!!!

This is another reason you know why I left formal teaching. I could no longer be a part of a system that leads people down a very misleading path. And so I had to break away and teach people in another way.

So yes Amber, to say that our society leads us astray or well in some cases bluntly lies to us, is putting it mildly.

I did not change over night though. The biggest changes have happened in the last 2 years. And I still always teach, do not believe anyone, this includes me. Seek sources, many sources and put your own ideas together. You will know what feels right within, if you allow it.

See, that is what growth, growing up is all about. Letting go of old paradigms and the ideas of others and finding your own truths as you go through life. We can go through life like zombies, asleep from day to day, believing in what others feed us, or we can start to reason, think and critically analyze what we have come to be told.

As far as dairy goes, I had a huge smile on my face as I read your questions and parts. Me – the cheese eating, milk drinking diva 3 years ago is today telling people that dairy is bad, yes Amber, crazier things have happened.

Do you realize that we are the only mammal that drinks milk, and that is milk from another animal as an adult??? And everybody just acts this as normal??? Even in biology class one learns that we lose the main enzyme, renin after being young children, which is needed to digest milk properly.

When you learn, always also consider where the information comes from and what does the person have to gain by telling you what they are. For example, what do I gain by telling you not to drink milk vs what do the dairy companies gain by telling you to drink milk….

As for the bacteria you speak of, they are not bad. Proper bacteria are very healthy, but it is not the yogurt that makes them good, it is them that make the yogurt good. And if we stay away from antibiotics (another bombshell :) and eat foods that favor healthy bacterial growth, then we can actually have a very healthy intestinal flora.

Anyhow there is way too much that I want to say that I could possibly cover in a comment. So for now I say this: simply stay open to the information you find out there, and start forming your own truths.

So I have so many resources to give you and point you towards, I actually do not even know where to start. The point is Amber, if you should choose to look into this further, the evidence is everywhere.

1. The first and easiest place I would start is to watch the following movie:
http://evolvingwellness.com/posts/483/movie-review-a-delicate-balance/?t=review
It is available as a pay-per-view online $5.00US (it is all legit) (get 4 other friends and it costs you each a buck ;)

2. Another option is to read the following book:
http://evolvingwellness.com/posts/725/book-review-skinny-bitch/?t=review

It is very short, easy to read, mind you has a few swear words, but talks in a language that really appeals to people, especially teens.

3. Subscribe to the website: NaturalNews.com

4. Start by reading this article from me as well:
http://evolvingwellness.com/posts/745/you-can-thank-high-protein-and-high-sodium-diets-for-your-bone-loss/

As for people seeming healthy who eat this stuff…. that all depends what they blame their headaches, their indigestion, their colds, flus, their weight gain, their thyroid problems, their skin problems, their allergies, their cancers, their high blood pressures on….need I go on… Too few people are making the connection between what they put in their body, and what they get in return.

And as for your questions, LOL, questions are wonderful as they make us grow and learn – and so you are welcome!