These days many people are concerned about their health, the environment, wellness, yada yada. It’s all good. Except when it begins to take on a proselytising tenor. Then it becomes like religion. I will call this new type of person (newly classified by me, that is) that gets on my nerves the Earth-loving Holistic Health Fanatic (Ehhf).
What are their characteristics?
- The moderates in the Ehhf cult are vegetarians. They subtly raise how eating meat is unhealthy/cruel/evil. Their more extreme comrades push something more akin to vegan tenets – milk is evil, soy is good, fruits that dropped from trees without being plucked are best. Organic is, of course, good. There is no thought to how elitist and possibly impractical organic food or waiting for the apple to drop is on a global scale.
- They are non-violent. This is good. Their non-violence extends to rueing how they were torn about killing a mosquito. Um. I don’t exactly cherish killing mosquitoes myself. We could, of course, compassionately ignore mosquitoes and see what happens. More likely someone else will do the dirty work so that we don’t have a malaria epidemic on our hands. A lot of their behaviour seems to be about focussing on the individual, which is good, but without considering the larger implications if everybody adopted their lifestyle.
- They are positive thinkers. Most of the ills of the word are because people don’t think positively enough. Cancer is the catch-all symptom of this lack of positivity. If only we thought happy thoughts, cancer would not exist. I find this line of reasoning offensive. It relegates all those with cancer to bitter, stressed-out souls who only need to attain zen. Unfortunately, I know some very people, much more optimistic and cheery than yours truly, who got cancer.
- They are anti-fat. The rationale is, of course, being fat is unhealthy. But is it? This post and this series have made me question my beliefs on fat. Worse I have noticed that Ehhfs who strive hard to be healthy and non-fat don’t have very healthy attitudes to people who are fat. There is outright distaste that surfaces in moments that are fleeting but ugly.
- If they are mothers, they are breastfeeders. Obsessively. At any cost. And because they did it, it must be worth it, right? Usually they don’t outright come out against formula, they just sympathetically understand.
- They go on and on. Almost everything comes around to this holisit-ism.
- They are intelligent or used to be just as they used to possess a critical faculty. But now, they will link up to any unsubstantiated badly written thing that pushes their agenda.
Bah. Makes one want to seek solace in a bag of sodium-saturated, mass-produced, meat-flavoured crisps.
I love you. Hahahaha.
Likewise
I think you should rant more often. This is epic. I’m passing it around
Aiya, I am always being told to tone it down, even when I am already toning it down.
LOL – I get you with this, although you might think of me as the same. I think as I’ve become more informed, especially about my food choices, there are other tenets of “healthy living” that have become part of that which includes things like trying to lower my meat consumption, eating more organically and yes, thinking positively
.
That being said, I totally acknowledge that everyone’s idea of healthy is personal and everyone has their own choices to make – I don’t advocate any type of “diet” or living standard and try and share things that interest me and I think might be of interest to others. It is something I am quite passionate about and actually hope to make a bigger part of my life.
I’m definitely not perfect – I chowed down on Maccas the other week because I couldn’t be arsed cooking and have frequently have fallen off my “Quitting Sugar” journey. I will make Evs get rid of creepy crawlies in the house (although I do try and get him to take them outside rather than kill them outright, but whatever works). But I do recognise certain things that make me feel good – physically and mentally that I try and live by.
Also one thing, actually two – fat is NOT evil – we actually can eat more of it without it doing major damage to our health. You’d be surprised at how deep and long some of agendas pushed by governments and food corporations have gone to keep that on the down low.
Second – positive thinking, I feel, is always good thing. It won’t cure cancer haha, but it will make a shitty situation less shitty.
Breastfeeding – funnily, despite my “earth-mother” tendencies – I’m not fussed about this. I do want to try breastfeeding, knowing the benefits of it, but I also know it’s hard and women, especially mothers have so much to worry about than get judged about their choices. Whatever floats your boat, really.
Oh dear, could you be an Ehhf? Well, on my Ehhf scale you are a 5, and definitely not obnoxious since I continue to read your blog. This is also where a blog interaction differs from face-to-face because I see a blog as your little corner to share what you will.
About fat, I’ll admit to being influenced by those agendas – how can one not be, it has been almost common sense for decades – but I’ve begun challenge it now.
I disagree on positive thinking. Like almost everything else, it works for some and doesn’t for others. It never has for me. Something in me always called my own bluff. Facing worst-case scenarios works for me, because it helps me to get beyond fear. With regards to positive thinking and illness specifically, here are some alternative viewpoints:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2010/jan/02/cancer-positive-thinking-barbara-ehrenreich
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1445-5994.2006.01194.x/abstract;jsessionid=08AFA716B7FC830DE4F0E13C2169DE44.d01t03?deniedAccessCustomisedMessage=&userIsAuthenticated=false
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277953699003378
My issue is with more than suggesting that positive thinking can be a coping strategy but the allied suggestion that a lack of it, that “negativity”, can somehow cause cancer. It veers so close to blaming the patient.
I’m glad you’re not fussed about breastfeeding. I think it’s a good choice but does not have the superpowers that it is made out to have. My attitude is that it’s one of those good-to-haves. If I had to do it over, I’d probably breastfeed simply because I’m too conditioned.
In this, as with all other isms, I think a critical mind is crucial and I think this is what the more ardent Ehhf’s lack. Like if I subscribe to an ism, it’s feminism, and I know I need to watch out for going with a point of view just because it has all the right feminist flags. With environmentalism, greenwashing has been raised as a concern. with holistic-ism, I think the tendency to see what seems “natural” as good can have pitfalls.
Totally – and I guess I’m always worried that I come off as “preachy” because I know how annoying that is.
And trust me – so have I – the biggest thing for me is that I read labels now in the supermarket and am always shocked to see that for everything that is purported to be low-fat and thus “better” for you is filled with other unpronounceable ingredients and a shitload of sugar to make up for the lack of taste. People don’t have the time or inclination to do that these days and see a label saying “low-fat” and feel like they are making a better choice.
Health is one of the sciences that is always evolving depending on new studies and follow ups of new ones – it’s constantly changing and I really believe everyone needs to be informed and responsible for their own choices in this regard.
Those articles are interesting – I wouldn’t go as far as saying it causes cancer, but I do think that your mental wellbeing can play a big part in your recovery. I LIKE the thought of positive thinking but I do have to admit here as well, the scientist in me does have a secret side of skepticism as well. That being said, I’ve become a lot more open to it (especially through yoga) and have seen some remarkable changes – probably not in a tangible way as such, but more my own inner self.
Same here with feminism – I do that too, even when sometimes my inner voice doesn’t quite agree. The courses I have done through this pregnancy (both through and outside of the hospital) have strongly encouraged breastfeeding – I think it’s great but won’t judge anyone who doesn’t do it. Who knows – I may not be able to do it myself lol.
Also, natural isn’t always better – I’m going to bring up sugar again – but just coz fruit juice is natural doesn’t mean it isn’t full of sugar and has the same effect as say a glass of soda. Chemically broken down, it is the same.
Ya, the low-fat is such a good example. Even “organic” (my issue with the elitism of organic food apart) has similar problems…specially with cosmetics but also with processed food. You read closely and it’s like one or two ingredients are organic. It would be useful to cover applying chemistry to interpret food and cosmetics labels in daily life in school or college. People are so afraid of chemicals these days… as you said, even the natural breaks down into a chemical.
That said, with fruit juice vs soda, at least fruit juice (hopefully, but likely if freshly squeezed) has some other nutritional value apart from being just sugar.
AMEN SISTAH!
hahahah! you, Bride are so cute
:)
Pass me one of those crisps even if they are meat flavored..so posts require me to break my vegetrian diet eh?
“so posts require me to break my vegetrian diet eh?” Okay, wait, didn’t understand this.
Errr…it should have read as SOME posts *Rolls eyes at self’s urgency to write comments sorry*
If you mean this post, no need to change diet. My point is simply that people should not be banging their ideology endlessly on other people’s heads. Simply being vegetarian does not qualify you as Ehhf.
Me too!! I will happily take a helping of those crisps any day!
SMOOCH. You said what I think. I find the lack of positivity = cancer thing the most offensive. I also got, by the way, a bit of “you must love/want your baby more next time round” and “you must value you body and your life more” after the miscarriage. Very, very “The fucking Secret” and made me so angry.
PS: I suspect I know what brought this post on. Facebook, noodles, yes?
Yes, I can imagine it would translate into that with regards to miscarriage. I have to physically bite tongue and count to ten, and then keep counting.
A friend also told me about how she was so inspired by some yogic pregnancy class that said that all the bad symptoms in pregnancy – nausea, etc – are because are bodies are filled with toxins. And I’m like eh, but you’re so healthy, how come you have those symptoms then?
Also, so sorry for not getting in touch in Bangalore (are you still there?) The entire trip was madness.
I’m going to call bullshit on that – toxins indeed.
Tell that to my very pregnant yoga teacher hahah
Actually, I read that nausea during pregnancy is a ‘good’ thing because it means your body is producing the pregnancy hormones in adequate quantities. And apparently, the rate of miscarriage among women who had nausea during their pregnancy is lower than that of women who didn’t – just something I read…suited me to believe it when I was pregnant because I was super nauseous.
I read a very awesome book on all the interesting scientific research on pregnancy… well quirky stuff… and yeah, this came up, but it’s not conclusively proven because there are many women who have severe nausea and miscarry. Another theory is that the greater nausea higher likelihood of girl child.
Love the post! My biggest peeve is the subtle dismissal of non- vegetarianism. The point on positivity and cancer had me gobsmacked – really? People actually say that?
As for killing mosquitoes, I remember someone telling me how inhuman it made her feel and I was left reeling. Madras is facing a mosquito menace at the moment and the only sound you hear late at night is that of multiple handheld electric mosquito- swapping bats (in the many homes on the street I live in), crackling away, as yet another swarm of mosquitoes are trapped under it. (yeah, go ahead, call me evil, but try being civil and non- violent towards a mosquito that bites you on your face as you try to sleep! :p).
I object to how vegeratianism is pushed in India, with scant regard to the casteism it is steeped in where Dalits are meat eaters. I also feel like as a philosophy it only goes so far – killing animals is cruel but killing plants is not because plants don’t feel pain like we do (sounds pretty similar to people who say animals don’t have consciousness like humans do). I get there is a difference but the whole thing revolves around a “just like us” model, which doesn’t seem very much more moral to me.
And cancer, yeah, this has been said and it was one of the things that provoked this.
While I don’t advocate pleasure in killing anything (not to say I didn’t feel satisfaction at snapping one of those mosquitoes on the aeroplane), I think not killing mosquitoes is unrealistic. Just as I think eating only organic food on a global scale is unrealistic.
Hah! This made me laugh a bit. I actually knew a few of these types. I call them the hipster gone a few more miles ahead. I try to do organic esp because Oosa has such low standards with food. Stuff banned in Canada, UK are all still being sold here! And there was this terrible thing to do with milk– I can’t seem to recollect the exact details but it was not good for my hypochondria! But it’s hard esp on a student budget! And I do like farmers market, I can actually feel the difference in the meat, but fat/positive thinking/ squashing kothus-I got no problems!
“Oosa has such low standards with food”
That surprised me. HK is worse than USA and India is worse than them both. That said, I would love to eat organic too, just that I find it unsustainably expensive. I do think that food tastes better and I like the idea of farmer’s markets also because it’s buying directly, etc. But I don’t think it’s globally sustainable simply because not sure that enough food can be produced with that method and also cost. The people who buy only organic are people who can afford it. So I don’t really see eating organic as a cause for moral smugness though organic food is probably nicer.
Love this (even though I am a vegetarian). Also, I actually do cherish killing mosquitoes. Mosquitoes kill lots of people and I believe in darwinian biology – survival of the fittest! Have you seen those electric mosquito killing racquets in India? The satisfying zapping sound of having killed a mosquito, especially a fat lazy one, so full of my blood that it can’t even fly.. I positively enjoy it.
Darwinian biology is little extreme no? By that logic we should be killing weaker humans also. I’m not advocating pleasure in killing anything, just that it’s got to be done with mosquitoes and mourning a mosquito or worse saying “I won’t kill it” seems idiotic.
I enjoyed the Rant. I have had my peeves too…I couldnt have done it better…Now I listen with tunnel ears – in through one and out the other.
P.S. I think you mean proselytizing in the first paragraph.
Oh god, it’s like I just cannto get that spelling right.
Haha this made me laugh out loud…even though I am pretty sure I am an Ehhf. (except for the low-fat part where my back side would beg to differ). In fact I have been telling myself I need to speak up more because I am very quiet and censored about my beliefs where Ehhfism is concerned and I tell myself I need to be more comfortable in my own skin.
I guess the part maybe where I differ is I have a very hard time telling people what to do. I am going to work on that
I think talking about what you believe is good , what I object to is when it becomes the only thing you say and also when one is non-critical about one’s own beliefs.
On the comment of more nausea = girl, nah! I dont think thats true, because I have a girl and I had ZERO nausea! but like GB, even I have read somewhere that nausea means your body is producing proper hormones..but I didnt have any for R..and even when I had my miscarriage, I didnt have any nausea..so I guess its body’s reaction eh?
That book was based on scientific studies, and those are based on statistical probability so there would always be some people who are exceptions.
Yeah, food truly is terrible. Like when we first started out, we had a bunch of friends who were fanatic farmers market propagandists. Every sat morning and the wholesome goodness, and buying milk shares etc. All good,but we were in no place to afford it.What annoyed me was the assumption that somehow everyone has access to a variety of choices and that you just need to choose the best one. Although I have to say that eventually I found farmers markets where -save for fish- things were almost, almost as much as how much I spend in a grocery store. I don’t entirely understand how it’s possible though.
“What annoyed me was the assumption that somehow everyone has access to a variety of choices and that you just need to choose the best one.”
Yeah, and when that option presents itself and is affordable, who wouldn’t chose it. But the sad fact is that mostly it isn’t.