My Grandfather lived to be 90 and spent most of his life eating whatever he wanted.
He also worked hard even well into his 80's.
He was a tall, lean farmer, about 6'4", 210 lbs, even when he was older.
He was a dedicated carnivore, too.
The food police will tell you it's a recipe for a disaster, wouldn't they? Grandpa ate 3 or 4 eggs, some sausage or steak and some bread for breakfast every day.
He also had meat for lunch AND for supper along with some good veggies.
He loved fruit pies, homemade chocolate ice cream and butter.
He did not care much for cake, though he would eat chocolate chip cookies.
We used milk straight from the cow, separated the cream and whole milk for the family to use and fed the skim milk to the pigs.
Grandpa grew chickens, eggs, pigs and Black Angus cattle.
All were raised humanely, never fed hormones and only had antibiotics when they went to feed lots at market in Chicago.
Hormones in meat are especially harmful to consume.
So what went wrong with our diets between now and then if it isn't saturated fat and beef? The short answer is sugar.
People eat huge quantities of sugar compared to what they used to eat.
But these days we eat sugar all day, every day.
What's wrong with sugar? The human body was never designed to consume and process large quantities of sugar.
In fact sugar, unlike protein and even fat is not necessary to human health.
So go for the things your body really needs and Truck Drivers are no different.
You need protein, some fat, and the good nutrients in complex carbohydrates like whole fruits and vegetables.
Anything refined, like refined flour and sugar that is white in color loses most of its nutrients in the refining process, making them not worth eating at all.
Potatoes (my personal favorite) are pretty worthless, too.
Did you know that everything we eat that we do not burn off immediately is stored as fat in the body.
Yes, everything including low fat sugar free cookies, meats, veggies and fruits will all end up in your belly and/or love handles.
What can you do? It's pretty easy really.
Skip the soft drinks.
They are loaded with sugar in its worst form, high fructose corn syrup.
Many health gurus think it's the ticking bomb causing the diabetic epidemic in the US.
Soft drinks can also cause drowsiness when the sugar wears off, not a good thing if you're on the road.
Drink coffee instead.
It has more antioxidants than OJ.
Then start eating real food.
Skip the desserts and pancakes made from refined flour and sugar in all its forms.
Did you know that prepared foods like spaghetti sauce often have sugar in them? If a food comes in a can or box it probably has some sugar in it and who knows what kind of preservatives, even if it's a savory food.
These types of foods could be a real problem for people who are diabetic, and they won't do the rest of us any good either.
Instead chose real foods simply prepared.
Eat good lean meats and eggs raised without hormones and antibiotics.
You want grass fed beef.
(Whose dumb idea was it to feed cattle feed made of cattle, anyway? Cattle are supposed to eat grass.
That way no one gets mad cow disease.
I bet some bean counters thought it up.
) You can also do well eating good veggies and fruit as close as you can find to right off the plant or tree.
Have some eggs.
Many nutritionists think eggs are the perfect protein wrapped in a convenient package around a yolk full of great nutrients.
Do they have cholesterol? Yes.
Is it what builds up in your blood? No.
That cholesterol comes from your liver, especially if you overeat.
Many more health problems are connected to overeating and sweets.
Grandpa wore his suits 50 years.
How many of us can say that?
He also worked hard even well into his 80's.
He was a tall, lean farmer, about 6'4", 210 lbs, even when he was older.
He was a dedicated carnivore, too.
The food police will tell you it's a recipe for a disaster, wouldn't they? Grandpa ate 3 or 4 eggs, some sausage or steak and some bread for breakfast every day.
He also had meat for lunch AND for supper along with some good veggies.
He loved fruit pies, homemade chocolate ice cream and butter.
He did not care much for cake, though he would eat chocolate chip cookies.
We used milk straight from the cow, separated the cream and whole milk for the family to use and fed the skim milk to the pigs.
Grandpa grew chickens, eggs, pigs and Black Angus cattle.
All were raised humanely, never fed hormones and only had antibiotics when they went to feed lots at market in Chicago.
Hormones in meat are especially harmful to consume.
So what went wrong with our diets between now and then if it isn't saturated fat and beef? The short answer is sugar.
People eat huge quantities of sugar compared to what they used to eat.
But these days we eat sugar all day, every day.
What's wrong with sugar? The human body was never designed to consume and process large quantities of sugar.
In fact sugar, unlike protein and even fat is not necessary to human health.
So go for the things your body really needs and Truck Drivers are no different.
You need protein, some fat, and the good nutrients in complex carbohydrates like whole fruits and vegetables.
Anything refined, like refined flour and sugar that is white in color loses most of its nutrients in the refining process, making them not worth eating at all.
Potatoes (my personal favorite) are pretty worthless, too.
Did you know that everything we eat that we do not burn off immediately is stored as fat in the body.
Yes, everything including low fat sugar free cookies, meats, veggies and fruits will all end up in your belly and/or love handles.
What can you do? It's pretty easy really.
Skip the soft drinks.
They are loaded with sugar in its worst form, high fructose corn syrup.
Many health gurus think it's the ticking bomb causing the diabetic epidemic in the US.
Soft drinks can also cause drowsiness when the sugar wears off, not a good thing if you're on the road.
Drink coffee instead.
It has more antioxidants than OJ.
Then start eating real food.
Skip the desserts and pancakes made from refined flour and sugar in all its forms.
Did you know that prepared foods like spaghetti sauce often have sugar in them? If a food comes in a can or box it probably has some sugar in it and who knows what kind of preservatives, even if it's a savory food.
These types of foods could be a real problem for people who are diabetic, and they won't do the rest of us any good either.
Instead chose real foods simply prepared.
Eat good lean meats and eggs raised without hormones and antibiotics.
You want grass fed beef.
(Whose dumb idea was it to feed cattle feed made of cattle, anyway? Cattle are supposed to eat grass.
That way no one gets mad cow disease.
I bet some bean counters thought it up.
) You can also do well eating good veggies and fruit as close as you can find to right off the plant or tree.
Have some eggs.
Many nutritionists think eggs are the perfect protein wrapped in a convenient package around a yolk full of great nutrients.
Do they have cholesterol? Yes.
Is it what builds up in your blood? No.
That cholesterol comes from your liver, especially if you overeat.
Many more health problems are connected to overeating and sweets.
Grandpa wore his suits 50 years.
How many of us can say that?