Welcome to my world and the world that many others share… a world where more and more people are finding they need to eat differently than the majority and differently than their ancestors because the toxicity in today’s world is contributing to various health challenges.  Yes, the majority that eat differently are suffering and are trying to prevent further suffering by eating healthier and many are misunderstood.

Most of you know that I used to eat copious amounts of processed and high sugar foods, drink far more alcohol than would be deemed necessary at social functions, and even smoke!  And then, by direct cause and effect, my daughter, Taylor was born, severely lacking in good bacteria and reacting to all of the common allergens.  In order to heal her, I needed to learn about nutrition, learn about the healthier alternatives to the common allergens and discover that even though her body reacted to drugs, there was a host of natural, effective remedies available.

I help children every day learn that food colouring makes them hyperactive, that wheat bloats them and makes them tired or depressed, that dairy contributes to their frequent ear infections and bedwetting…and then there are the adults that are trying to go gluten free or lose weight or see a holistic practitioner for the first time because conventional medicine is not working at healing their digestive system.

And you know what we all face when we go about things differently than the majority?  Contempt, anger, labels of “crazy” or “obsessed” or “ignorant” or we are told to ‘live a little’ or ‘you only live once.’ For some of us, relationships end because of our food choices!  Some of us end up extremely isolated because attending social functions is too difficult emotionally.  Some of us forfeit careers because we end up home schooling, due to the fact that our children cannot eat the foods that other children eat.

More and more people are suffering from symptoms, conditions and disease.  More and more people are becoming more educated about food.  We are starting to see people making different food choices more than ever before.  I implore those of you reading this blog post, to have compassion and respect, as opposed to contempt, for those of us that are choosing to do things differently.  For it is only by doing things differently, that some of us will live long and healthy lives with minimal suffering.

When we choose to do things differently, some feel that we are threatening their way of being or that we feel they must be “wrong” in how they are doing things.  What works for one person may not work for another person; that is all!

And to those of you that are doing things differently, there is no need to broadcast it nor is there any need to try to convert others to our way of thinking.  And when you attend social functions, you may be interested in:

• Filling up at home beforehand
• Offering to help the host/hostess serve their food to the guests, so that others don’t wonder why you are not partaking
• Switching the topic of conversation when others start asking you or chastising you for your dietary choices

And for those of you that are hosting social functions, who care about your guests that cannot partake in all the delicious wonders, you may be interested in:

• Serving some fruit and vegetables
• Providing some options containing no dairy or wheat, such as meatballs or a shrimp platter
• Offering some all natural, homemade desserts devoid of chemicals

Wouldn’t it be nice if those of us that figure out what we need to do for ourselves were applauded, as opposed to shunned?  We all have to live in this world together.  It is my fervent hope that just one person is kinder to another, who cannot eat certain foods that are commonly eaten by others, as a result of reading this article or passing this article onto another.

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Until next time,

Meredith