Eat something! Please!

Every morsel we eat must be justified by health reasons. We are no longer allowed to eat enjoyably without having a scarlet F sewn upon our bellies. You eat the banana for potassium, not because it tastes good. Chocolate is permitted only because it contains antioxidants. Every package of food reminds us that it is fat free, high in antioxidants, full of vitamin C, low on calories, or otherwise healthy in some way. It is no longer a good enough excuse to eat because we are hungry--hunger is regarded as a necessary misery that is never to be assuaged. If you choose to respond to your hunger with the perfectly reasonable response of eating, you are viewed as a disgusting gluttonous animal who has no self control.

Well, screw that. Hunger is not something we should accept as necessary for health or social acceptance. If I'm hungry, I'm miserable, distractible, and less functional. When well-fed and rested, I can accomplish far more, and I am a lot easier to get along with. I have to say, too, that working with people who aren't feeding themselves enough can be aggravating. Constantly complaining that they're dizzy, always irritable, and they can't focus. Because they're starving all the time, all they talk about is food, calories, and fat. They whine and bitch at someone who IS eating well, either by saying how unfair it is for that person to eat in front of them, or by henpecking them over how unhealthy their food choices are. That, and the unending stream of "I'm sooooooooo fat" whining.

So please, for the sake of your own sanity, and for that of the people around you, eat something when you are hungry. Eat enough to satisfy your hunger--and don't fear foods that contain fat, as they can satisfy hunger more quickly than foods that have none.