2742: Vice

[Mermaid]

Originally Posted by Enunciated Piffle

Oo0oO. Very cool.

You ever read Carl Hart's High Price? I'm an ex addict. It's a bit hard to listen to non-addicts talk about choice. I mean, once your reward system is comprised; it's pretty hard to make the right choice - not be an idiot.

Absolutely love that book! I love how he wove his experiences together with his drug research. It's rare for scientists to openly speak on social issues like he does. That's changing tho.

Yeah, especially when it is compromised before it is fully developed. There is a push for restrictions on food advertising for kids and for more nutrition education in early childhood. It worked for lowering the amount of kids smoking and drinking so they are hoping it works for nutrition.

Once those signaling pathways are damaged it can really hard or impossible to reconnect. Especially in cases of eating disorders, obesity and addiction.

[Mermaid]

Originally Posted by astrokahn

While I dont disagree about poor and uneducated going together, I still don't buy it for the majority of American stupidity.

Ive tried to figure this out soooooo much after leaving the south. My family is all regular middle class people who live in SC and are either highly educated or just super fucken smart, and they still have these ignorant blind spots. So for them it isn't educational or money related at all. It's a culture of "healthy is tree hugging gay shit." Meat is for strong men yadda yadda. Don't pussify my food.

I live in Texas now and I work in construction. Again, mostly white middle class people, educational levels vary although everyone in my company is put through electrical school as part of our work. But they're all reaaaal Texasy and they look at healthy food like it's stupid or weird. It's a cultural thing where ANYTHING different or new is pushed away. It is so weird.

I found this in New Hampshire as well as various places across the country while traveling. Without exception, where there is isolation, there is ignorance. I know I'm in the boonies when they don't know what soy milk is.

You have to take into account that southern cuisine is heavy because it was created in a time when farming and other laborous jobs were the norm. Even keeping a house was way more labor intensive then than it is now. The heavy food was needed to maintain the heavy workload.

Heart disease and weight only recently became an issue. Because of the switch to less laborous work.

The food isn't necessarily the problem. Viewing food as "good" or "bad" can be counterintuitive. Dopamine levels drop and cravings start almost immediately when study participants are told they can't eat something or are about to be put on a diet.

I don't necessarily see a preference for your cultural cuisine to be a bad thing. You have to meet people where they are at.

There are ways to add more nutrition to traditionally southern food. Whole grain pasta and real cheese for the Mac and cheese. Grass fed and free range meats. Gradually cut down on salt. Try to break free of the "clean your plate" thing that parents push. If you are eating something heavy or particularly tasty, pay attention to when it no longer tastes as good as it did on the first bite. (that means your brain is starting to send the satiation signal and you are likely already full. Takes 20 minutes for your brain to full receive the full signal)

[astrokahn]

Meat and cheese are not healthy. How is this still not known?

[astrokahn]

I think we've lost it. The entire point is that we've given up personal responsibility for our actions and blame it on every god damn thing under the sun. Keith you just won me.

[Enunciated Piffle]

You guys watch that What the Health doc on Netflix? Processed meat = cancer? I'm not entirely convinced. But there's a lot of feces/ chemicals involved in our food today. Makes ya wonder.

Hey Mermaid give me a good neuroscience- related book

[Mermaid]

Originally Posted by astrokahn

Meat and cheese are not healthy. How is this still not known?

It depends on how you define "healthy"

I define it by its nutritional value and how it makes you feel.

For example, cheese is full of fat, protein, b vitamins, zinc and magnesium. All things your body needs for metabolism. However, if you are allergic, lactose intolerant or have any discomfort from cheese then it's not healthy for you.

[Mermaid]

Originally Posted by Enunciated Piffle

You guys watch that What the Health doc on Netflix? Processed meat = cancer? I'm not entirely convinced. But there's a lot of feces/ chemicals involved in our food today. Makes ya wonder.

Hey Mermaid give me a good neuroscience- related book

All I've been reading are journal articles and textbooks lately.

If you are interested, the nobel prize when to a group of neuroscientists and pharmacologist for circadian rhythm breakthroughs. I've been reading about that lately. Connections between shift work (and jet lag) and heart disease, obesity, depression. Brand new field. Cool stuff.

[Mermaid]

I can't watch food documentaries anymore.

There is usually a blending of unnecessary scare tactics, faulty interpretation of research results and a conflating of correlation and causation.

The more egregious the claims made the more netflix views. I've heard enough about what the health to know it would just give me a headache.

Also the focus on weight loss to solve all health problems is worrisome cause it is never that cut and dry.

[Enunciated Piffle]

I'll look into that. Interesting.

Ya know Kaligula made some post about nicotine being used as a pesticide. Then he followed it up by saying its effects are less on humans. It's not imo. Nicotine is a stimulant and a neurotoxin at certain doses.

I've tried to quit smoking using a vape and it's easy to od. throw your heart rhythm into chaos. It's scary.

[Mermaid]

I've heard about vaping possibly being an issue for that reason. There is not set stopping point like with a cigarette or blunt.

There are a number of neurotoxins in cigarettes. Even the pesticides they spray on the tobacco plants can be full of them.

I was in SWAT (students working against tobacco) in high school. The greatest club for getting out of class. We went to middle schools to give presentations. I like to think I stopped at least a few dozen kids from taking up smoking.