Clean eating Bandits

Whilst proud of having a blog since 2015, I am by no means a tech-savvy person and have only just joined the crowds of Instagrammers around the world. I don't do face-book, snap-chat and I'm certainly not a tweeter. I like to text and whatsap but I constantly have a back-log of emails. You get the picture.

Fuelled by a younger generation, social media is being used as a platform to share vegan and vegetarian food stories, pictures, information, recipes and guides, often sponsored and endorsed by the very celebrities we follow. So far so good. I love to gaze at plates of beautifully presented food. My only quibble is when so called experts pop up claiming miracle diets which heal. It seems there is always someone out there ready to endorse one of these:-

Gluten free, sugar free, processed food free, dairy free, anti-cancer, meat free, healthy heart food, anti proteins in grains, alkaline eating, plant-based, clean eating ...

They begin with a beautiful/handsome healthy looking person cooking, presenting and eating the food and replacing everything we know with a substitute. These people are well-meaning and whatever they're doing has worked for them but it might not suit everyone. Their theories are not scientific. They are not always qualified nutritionists. The medical industry does not always recognise their theories.

Our diet is a personal thing and we can choose to follow whatever suits us. I am a happy vegetarian who does eat dairy. I have pescatarian, flexitarian, gluten free and vegan friends and family. There is nothing wrong with anyone's choices. All I'm saying is that social media, rightly or wrongly, has driven this way of eating and there is a pressure on us for everything (and everyone) to look perfect.

Leaping in to the New Year!

Only three days in to January and enjoyed a lovely brunch with friends at a healthy eating cafe. Topics of conversation included Dry January, detoxing and the NutriBullet! What a sign of the times; our age, our lifestyle and the world around us!

Over the festive period I received a text message from WaterAid asking me to only drink water for the month of January, presumably to be sponsored and raise money for this worthwhile cause. Whilst I can give up alcohol for a month, cups of tea might be a stretch too far! 

I picked up a leaflet in said healthy eating cafe this morning entitled Juice and Soup Cleanse information pack. Basically there are three cleanse programmes to choose from, all of which include a lot of liquid and very little solids. I take my hat off to anyone who likes that much soup, juice, hot water and herbal tea and who gets excited by a handful of nuts! Personally I'm a believer in everything in moderation so will not be partaking in this extreme diet.

However I am planning to do Dry January again. I'm not a massive drinker anyway but quite like the idea of restoring the December/January equilibrium! I'll drink more water with occasional lime or elderflower sodas and maybe even have a mocktail for a treat.

As for food, I have eaten enough individually wrapped chocolates and toffees from tubs and will not crave another for a little while.

On New Years Eve at a Murder Mystery Dinner I took the part of Mae Vest and enjoyed researching quotes by Mae West to throw into conversation. One of my favourites was:

I never worry about diets. The only carrots that interest me are the number you get in a diamond.

Haha - well said Mae!