Have you ever found yourself hungrier an hour or two after eating healthy food? Then a different time you eat fast food, and three hours later you’re still feeling full and bloated? I read an article that made me realize why.
I can’t find the article right this second, but it basically had a lady who has been carrying around a certain un-named fast food joint’s Happy Meal for – ready? – four years. Four years, and the only thing that looks different is the roll, which only looks crumbly and hard. The fries look as fresh as if they had just come out of the fryer. The burger and “cheese” look as tasty as ever.
I had always wondered why I feel so hungry from eating healthy food just a short time later until I realized that being hungry and having an empty stomach are two different things. Feeling full isn’t as great as it sounds, especially when you have been feeling full for hours. Have you figured out why you’re still full after the Arches and not asparagus? It’s because the food doesn’t digest! Bacteria doesn’t touch it even after four years. The acids in our stomachs have to work overtime to get that stuff broken down.
To me, now, fast food isn’t food. I mean, I still like it and find myself craving it, but I also have realized that I’m starting to crave vegetables too. Like tonight, I didn’t know what to eat, so I threw a bunch of veggies into a pot and made some stir fry with a bit of rice and chicken. I ate a lot of food, but my stomach is empty now. That means what I ate was used as fuel by my body. Now that I know what it means, I like the feeling of emptiness after eating. It’s gratifying, and the best part is I don’t feel sick before going to bed like I would have if I had made a poor choice on the way home.
-j
I'm Jason, and I like to write.