Confessions of a Sodaholic

I have had a passionate love affair with soda for years.  When I worked in construction I enjoyed close to 5 liters of Mountain Dew a day.  I have cut back drastically since then and at times (health kicks) I have even stopped completely.  These time I am usually tired and plagued by headaches that drive me back to the sugary substance.

When my readers chose healthy eating as their subject of discussion I decided to do 2 blogs.  The first "What Would Jesus Eat", looked at eating from an almost spiritual perspective.  This allowed me to not only to study the Bible, but also the newest scientific data on healthy eating.  I was almost surprised to see that  red meat and sodas were on the same playing field at the top of the food pyramid.  I decided to quit drinking sodas for one week and inadvertently I also took a hiatus from red meat as well.

What is wrong with sodas?  Where do I begin?  Well, there is nothing wrong with their taste.  They are delicious beyond compare.  The problem lies with how they get that way.  The fizzy goodness of carbonation robs the blood of the oxygen needed to perform any strenuous task.  The sugar content provided by high fructose corn syrup is almost unrecognizable to our digestive system and stored mainly as fat.  The sodium  content guarantees that we will stay thirsty for more.  The caffeine included is essentially an addictive drug, the likes of which have americans lined up at Starbucks every morning.  Some sodas also contain phosphoric acid.  This is the same acid used by dentists to remove tooth enamel before drilling.

The sad thing is I have known all of this for a long time.  It is you the reader who has compelled me to step back and take a second look.  I chose to take one week to test the waters of soda free living.  I decided to chronicle my journey.  Below is a journal of my soda (and red meat) free week.

Sunday:  Today I had a small cup of coffee and two Advil to relieve the headaches that I was getting.  I drank 2 liters of water within 2 hours time.  Why doesn't water relieve my thirst?  My body must be craving the sugar.  I am beginning to doubt that I can do this.

Monday:  No soda and less headaches, only one Advil today.  The downside of today was that I had 5 doughnuts.  I think that my body is craving the sugar it is used to getting.  I couldn't stay awake past 11:30pm (I am normally up until around 1:00am).

Tuesday:  No headaches today!  I cut out the sweets but I feel famished.  I can't seem to eat enough to make up for the calories I'm used to.  I had 3 and a half sandwiches  for lunch (usually 1).

Wednesday:  I am starting to look at food differently.  I ask why I want something and whether I should eat it.  I went to a steakhouse today and had fish, a sweet potato and water.  I didn't even want a steak.

Thursday:  I still find myself avoiding junk food.  I usually eat chips or a frozen pizza at night.  I have been eating almonds or fruit with water all week so far.  I still cannot seem to stay awake at night.

Friday:  My energy level was up today and I am loving the water. I can't wait to have a soda on Sunday! We went to CiCi's and I had two salads with olive oil (what's wrong with me?).

Saturday:  Plain yogurt and blueberries for breakfast, went to the park, and stopped by Krispy Kreme in Salibury.  Hey, it was "HOT NOW" so don't judge me!  I am feeling great, and I honestly do not know if I even want a soda tomorrow.

What Would Jesus Eat?

What Would Jesus Eat?  To answer this question we must look to the Bible.  Jesus is only recorded eating a few times, but we know that being Jewish and perfect he would have followed the dietary laws of the Old Testament.  Jesus did not follow all of the rules that the pharisees had tacked on to the laws, but rather he followed the law with a desire to honor God.  Let me be clear before I begin, by saying that we are not compelled to follow these laws.  These laws were to set the jewish nation apart from the world.  Their very diet helped identify them as the people of God.  We can however learn from seeing God's protective shepherding of his people in this area.


Were these just random rules set by God, or were they healthy eating concepts that were way ahead of their time?  I believe they were the latter.  Jesus would have eaten whole grains at nearly every meal and since olives were native to Israel they would have plenty of healthy fats.  Fish were the most readily available meat source in Jesus' time and he is recorded fishing, cooking, eating and giving fish to others.  


Red meat was seldom eaten and Jesus may have had it once or twice a month.  It could also hardly be called red meat because they would only prepare it well done (no blood).  This is backwards to most people in our culture.  We eat red meat daily and fish once or twice a month.  Whole grains are seldom eaten in favor of white bread, white rice, and flour.  This poison was not even available in Jesus' time nor would it have been allowed.  Pork was off limits completely.  


The fish eaten by the Jewish people did not include catfish, shellfish, or mollusks such as crabs and lobster.  It was pretty much a given that if an animal were a bottom feeder (catfish), water filter (shellfish), or a scavenger (mollusks) they were forbidden.  It is amazing how true to science the Hebrew laws were.


All fruits and vegetables were permitted by God except grape products prepared by non Jews.  This was probably because the alcohol content would have been higher.  Let us also remember that wine today is different than Biblical wine.  Wine was permissible, but had only a mild amount of alcohol in it.   "Strong drink" (which was forbidden) in Biblical times was 3-11% alcohol.  Today, distillation increases alcohol content.  This method was not discovered until A.D. 1500. Modern wine has 9-11% alcohol.  In Jesus' time no Jewish person was drinking this amount of alcohol.  


What about snacks and drinks?  Jesus would have had fruits, grains or other healthy snacks.  We know this because he is recorded in Mark 11 as being hungry and going to a fig tree in search of a snack.  Another time his disciples chow down on grain in a field.  Jesus also enjoyed a honeycomb.  These were rare treats in those days but still more natural than the refined processed sugars of today.  It may be interesting to note that the only time he is recorded eating honeycomb is in his glorified body, but I think he probably had some before.  When it comes to drinks he is recorded as having wine and telling others to give water to people in need.  Jesus may have also had milk, but this was considered more of a luxury like honey.


How does this diet match up with the latest food pyramid based on scientific research?  Well, there are two variations.  Harvard has done one that has exercise as its base.  This is right up Jesus' alley since he did manual labor (carpenter), and walked everywhere.  The other more widely accepted pyramid begins with whole grains.  This just happens to be the most regularly eaten food of Jesus' time.  Produce, vegetable oils, and fish and poultry are the next steps of the pyramid.  The top contains sugary foods and red meat because we should only have them every now and then, and pork, shellfish, and mollusks don't even make the list.  


The food pyramid continually changes from decade to decade.  The newest one is based on our cunning 21st century scientific knowhow.  It is strikingly similar to how Jesus ate 2,000 years ago and God's people for 1,500 years before that.  All we had to do was read the Bible.  This timeless book continues to speak truth even in these postmodern times.  Jesus' diet may not be required for today, but it sure could not hurt.  Let's not forget Jesus' most important lesson on food--"It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'"  There is always a need for healthy eating, but only God can make us truly whole.


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Confessions of a Sodaholic