The older I get the more I crave comfort food. My craving for healthy foods like vegetables and fruit only comes when I am clogged enough to feel miserable and/or I am so over weight that walking becomes a chore or bone spurs start to grow and walking becomes painful.

When I was a child we learned to eat nutritiously in school. 3 meals a day was the rule and bread and milk where touted as the most important components of a child’s diet.

A healthy breakfast included bacon, eggs and toast with butter and a glass of milk - or sugary cereals swimming in milk with fruit on top. Lunch was soup, a sandwich and a glass of milk with cookies for desert.  After school we snacked on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, cake or cookies with a glass of milk – preferably chocolate flavored. Dinner was usually meat, veggies and a starch like rice, pasta or potatoes and a pudding/jello or ice cream and cake for desert - with a glass of milk. Years later we learned that some of our dietary issues came from the fact we were lactose intolerant.

Over the decades there have been many debates on what healthy eating actually is, and it is clear that although the suggested food regimens of the 50’s-60’s fall short of healthy habits, we were definitely eating better back then, which leads to my current situation.

As the years go by and my finances change my food choices have become more affluent and less healthy. I eat a lot more meat and fewer vegetables. Savory snacks, especially potato chips have replaced apples, bananas and berries. I must have the creamiest of cheeses and the butteriest of breads. 

My biggest delight is dinking 2 or 3 sugary cocktails when I’m out for the evening with family and friends.  And don’t even mention fried food. Fry up a paper bag and I’ll probably eat that too. Now, that of course, is an exaggeration but that yuk that just went through your mind is the same yuk my body makes when it’s trying to digest all the crud that I love so much.

As a teenager and a young woman I did not recognize the affect my eating habits would have on my future health. I’ve been diagnosed as overweight and pre-diabetic with a disposition to hypertension. I’ve been fighting tooth decay for decades and arthritis is trying to become a part of my life.
American Foods Banned in Other Countries

Living an enjoyably active life is a challenge. The most significant challenge is having enough energy to do the things I enjoy – hiking, swimming, horseback riding and playing handball. The pain caused by diseases such as arthritis and osteophytes limits joint movement and encourages fatigue and depression.

I will not succumb to these slowly encroaching illnesses that are trying to steal my joy for living. I have decided to embark on my return to good health, restore my energy, live a pain free life and get my body back. I'm eating my last Belgian chocolate as I write this blog.😊 I am going to dump 25 of the 185 pounds I am now carrying.

I’ve no plans to go on a diet. I will resume a natural way of eating that does not include processed sugar, canned foods and sugary alcoholic beverages. I’ve already started body strengthening workouts with my favorite online senior citizen exercise gurus.

I know that without diet pills, extreme weight loss programs or high impact exercise it will take some time to achieve my goals. I also know that I will not suffer from the yoyo effect because I am going to give my body the time it needs to heal from the abuse it has survived over 70 years.

Young or old! Even if you don’t have any health issues or a weight problem, I’d love for you to join me in my quest. Let’s stay healthy together. I’ll let you know how I’m doing and I would really appreciate any suggestions and/or recipes you might suggest to help keep me motivated and on the right path.