The Decision: Going Back to Basic

The time has come to remove myself from the modern, 21st century diet, while still living in a modern, 21st century world. Filled with ingredients that do not occur naturally, filled with food that our ancestors were probably not intended to eat, the modern day diet is, I hypothesize, causing me nothing but problems. Physical, mental, spiritual, financial, cultural problems. It's time to go back to eating things that grow straight from the earth. Not the Nabisco factory, not the fast food assembly line, not the Keebler Elves' tree.

Health and Well Being

My primary reason for taking on this bold task is to improve my health. I have IBS, which, in essence, means I have digestive problems, be they caused by diet, stress, lifestyle, etc. It's one of those vague syndromes/diseases that affects a large percentage of the American population, yet the true causes and cures are unknown. Sucks, huh? I often wonder if there actually is a medically known cure and big pharma simply won't allow that information out because it would cripple the gastroenterological facets of their business. You know, meds like Pepto Bismol, Imodium, Kaopectate, Mylanta, Tums, Pepcid, Tagament, Zantac, Bean-O. Gas-X. Perhaps there is some miracle way to alleviate all digestive problems instead of repeatedly taking these meds as temporary solutions to lifelong problems. Perhaps it's through medicine. Perhaps it's through living a healthy lifestyle. Perhaps that solution lies in a true and complete change of diet.

I also hope to improve my weight, stress and energy levels. Not to mention my predisposition to such lovely modern-day diseases that run in my family: heart disease, diabetes, cancer.

Facts and Fiction and Perceptions

I am going on my gut with this sweeping change in diet. Not too much initial research and no specific diet to follow. Rather, I'll follow what makes sense as being natural to eat. During the experiment, however, I plan to read, research, and share information I find about the modern diet, processed foods, the almighty food pyramid, vitamins, modern diseases, carnivores, and evolution.

My suspicions are that the food pyramid and the omni-present push by the good ol' U.S. of A. to eat a balanced diet of dairy, meat, and produce has ulterior motives to John Q. Citizen living a healthy diet. After all, these are the same folks who allow cigarettes and alcohol to be sold to anyone over 18 and 21 by some of the world's big. And if corn syrup is in almost every product, why can't I buy a bottle of it?

I also understand that many of the country's major killers -- heart disease, cancer, diabetes, obesity -- are byproducts of the modern lifestyle, consisting largely of stress and mass-produced substances that masquerade as food. That these diseases are rarely found in third world countries or weren't around a few hundred years ago seems to be more than coincidence.

Before I ramble any more, I'll move on to the scientific experiment at hand.

What To Consume

In choosing this neo-homo habilis diet, I had to make one concession. I couldn't possibly be expected to live in present-day Suburbia, USA, and go foraging in the wild to battle squirrels and deer for the few seeds, berries, and nuts that grow in the woodlands of a highway jughandle. And I couldn't, for many reasons, simply exile myself on a remote island with a volleyball as my only all in the name of improved health. So my scavenging will occur in the modern jungle, the mega-size grocery store.

However, when I made my initial supermarket sweep, I realized that most aisles are going to be off limits.

All of these staples had to go: salt, pepper, sugar, butter, milk, cheese, bread, eggs, oil. No meat. No fish. No cheese. No animal byproducts. No processed goods.

So what the heck is left? Almost everything in the produce section of a grocery store is fair game: acorn squash, alfalfa sprouts, apples, apricots, artichokes, asparagus, avocados, bamboo shoots, bananas, blueberries, blackberries, bok choy, broccoli, brussel sprouts, butternut squash, cabbage, cantaloupe, carob, carrots, celery, cherries, coconuts, collards, corn, cranberries, cucumbers, currants, dates, dragonfruit, eggplant, endive, escarole, figs, garlic, ginger, grapefruit, grapes, green beans, guavas, honeydew, jicama, kale, kohlrabi, kumquats, leeks, lemons, lettuce, limes, loganberries, mangoes, mushrooms, nectarines, okra, onions, oranges, parsnips, passion fruit, peaches, pears, peas, peppers, persimmons, plantains, pineapple, pomegranate, potatoes, plums, pumpkin, radishes, raspberries, rhubarbs, rutabagas, spinach, squash, starfruit, strawberries, Swiss chard, tangerines, taro, tomatoes, turnips, watercress, watermelon, yams, yucca, zucchini, etc. Other acceptable edibles include fresh herbs such as chives, cilantro,mint leaves, parsley, rosemary, sage, tarragon, thyme. And nuts and seeds – loose and still in their shells, not shelled or dry roasted or salted: almonds, Brazil nuts, cashews, chestnuts, hazelnuts, peanuts, pecans, pistachios, macadamias, pine nuts, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, walnuts, etc. And, lastly, a slight concession: beans. Dried only, with no preservatives. None of those canned and sitting in syrup ones. Black-eyed peas, cannellinis, chick peas, kidney beans, lentils, navy beans, soybeans, etc. No jarred spices. Probably a no on frozen veggies, too.

But what about the beloved coffee and cacao beans? Hmm... I'd have to find them fresh. Might require a trip to Colombia. Same would go for sugar. If I could get my hands on pure, fresh sugar cane, then I'd be set. Only it might require a trip to Hawaii. I've decided that coffee beans, cacao beans, and sugar are off limits until further notice.

And to drink? Just water. No coffee, tea, beer, wine, soda, or juice. Not even coffee or tea created naturally by my own hands.

An interesting question, what about naturally occurring drugs like tobacco and marijuana? Could I eat them? Or "cook" them over a fire? Probably not something homo habilis would've done, huh?

For now, I'm limiting the diet to all of the fresh produce, herbs, nuts, seeds, and beans available fresh, but not bothering with "stimulant" beans, cane, or "drug" plants. And it's all getting washed down with spring water (not purified bottled water or tap water, because those are, sadly, processed and tainted).

Modern World

Again, the premise for this experiment relies on the basis that I am not removing myself from modern society, only from its eating habits. Like I said, I will not live in the woods or the jungle; I will live in my apartment in suburbia, pay rent, use electricity and plumbing, work at my full-time job, go to the gym, socialize, see family, go to the movies, watch TV, run errands, etc. And I will have access to modern cooking conveniences. But I will abide by the following guidelines in the kitchen:

Utensils and dishes: use of forks, knives, spoons permitted; nutcracker permitted; masher permitted. Plates, bowls, cutting boards allowed.

Appliances: microwave allowed; blender, mixer, electric knife, juicer, etc. all off limits.

Stovetop: pots and pans permitted to cook/heat food. Only water permitted for cooking. No butter or oils.

Oven: use permitted, but again, no oil or butter.

Example: A potato baked in the oven is acceptable. A potato wrapped in aluminum foil and baked in the oven is not acceptable. A baked potato with butter or sour cream or cheese is not acceptable. A baked potato topped with boiled broccoli is acceptable.

Concerns

I have a few concerns.

First, my health. While I know, despite the magical food pyramid's suggestions, that the above-mentioned foods contain all of the vitamins and nutrients my body needs, I am concerned about the initial shock this change may cause to my digestive system. Still, I'll take some extra trips to the bathroom and some foul stenches in exchange for, hopefully, improved health.

Stigma. I don't want people to think I'm on the Raw Diet. I'm cooking some of this, after all. I don't want to be labeled a vegan. They're stereotypically defined as hardcore, extreme, militant, trying to push their beliefs on others. I'm doing this for myself, despite the anthropological pitfalls that are inevitably ahead of me. I'm not doing this for a cause other than my own health.

Should animal rights groups support my effort, great. Should farmers support my diet, fantastic. Should environmentalists support my crusade, wonderful. But don't expect me to be wearing a "Jersey Fresh" shirt or making appearances at Farm Aid anytime soon.

Expectations

Potentially positive: improved health, weight loss, more energy, more free time, saving money.

Potentially negative: being ostracized, malnutrition, lack of energy, humiliation, embarrassment, diarrhea.

Goal

The ultimate goal is to prove that I can improve my health and lifestyle by simply eating foods that were naturally and originally intended for the genus homo to eat: items made available to us by the earth before humans figured out how to mass produce, process, and package food-like products for all to consume.

This is much more than going vegan. It's going back to our animal needs. It's primal. It's going back to basic.

Time to scavenge for my first meal.

P.S.

My wife, whose idea this originally was, has decided to go back to basic, too. Though she's already said she's conceding to use olive oil and whole grain bread, she may have a tougher journey ahead as she spends her weekdays toiling in the metropolis of Manhattan, a bastion of culinary no-nos.