A Fork In The Road To Wellness: A Mom's Tale Of Discovery

I have traveled a (long, winding) road to wellness without a map. Each stop along the way (even if it seemed a dead-end) provided new insights. In grade school, I made rash decisions without careful research. I listened intently to the "experts" during the low-fat craze and changed my diet accordingly. I cut out one food group after another (dairy, meat, carbs, etc.) until I had developed a full-blown eating disorder. It was a long detour, but I learned a great deal from the experience (as dangerous and destructive as it was) and shared that wisdom with many high school students as a guest speaker in Lakewood High School's sports nutrition classes.

As I moved into adulthood, I looked more critically at the latest headlines in health and fitness. I tried diets that seemed healthier on paper, but did not suit my body's specific needs. I learned about the strong connection between big business and nutritional research and began to take a different perspective on what I thought was the foundation of wellness... the food pyramid, the media, "expert" opinions and even recommendations from the FDA. An eye-opening (and somewhat disturbing) book that I read at this time was The Food Revolution by John Robbins.

An entirely new set of obstacles arose with the birth of my children. I fight a daily battle between my protective instinct (and years of nutritional research) and modern culture which defines what is "normal" and "right" to my very impressionable children. Thankfully, I'm not the only one struggling in this area (because misery loves company, right?!). Betsy Block, a food writer and mother of two, eloquently (and humorously) chronicled her family's daily mealtime mayhem in the book The Dinner Diaries: Raising Whole Wheat Kids in a White Bread World (available at Lakewood Public Library).

Essentially, it comes down to this: when they are young (meaning not yet exposed to peer pressure or school lunches), you can convince children that a whole grain bagel is a "treat" and the prepared food section of the local health food store is "fast food." However, it doesn't take long before they get a taste of the "good stuff" (that's sarcasm, folks) and refuse the very foods that will strengthen their immune systems, help them focus and build strong muscles.

To make matters worse (and add a new fork in the road to wellness), both of my children have food allergies. And even with my extensive knowledge of health and nutrition, I could not help them. The daily stress of anticipating the repeated asthma attacks, hives, eczema and even vomiting depleted me emotionally. When traditional (Western) medicine failed us (repeatedly), we turned to alternative care... and hopped on a new information highway.

And lest I get all complacent with our current path, my daughter started scratching again and my son repeatedly complained of headaches and stomachaches this week. So, I'm doing more research (beginning with a truly exceptional book called What's Eating Your Child? by Kelly Dorfman, MS, LND) and instituting more changes.

We may have tapped the brakes, but we have not stopped the journey.