One of my bigger pet peeves about diets is the tragic change in the word “diet”. Originating from Greek diaita meaning “manner of living”, diet evolved to indicate the type of food a person usually consumed. However, when we say “he’s on a diet” we’re not talking about the fact that he eats food, we’re saying he’s on a special and probably restrictive diet. He’s dieting. How depressing! “Diet” should have a beautiful connotation, the sum of all things delicious and nourishing that we consume from day to day and year to year. The bringer of health, longevity, mental acuity, and physical balance.
Maybe this all starts with the fact that I generally don’t approve of the idea of a short term special diet. Logically lasting change is formed by ongoing habits and practices, not temporary fixes. Especially in the area of food, if it’s not healthy on a long term basis I can’t help but question its claim to healthy if just consumed in the short term. I suppose you could argue that a problem with low iron should be remedied in the short term by iron supplements, but actual underlying problem of not getting enough dietary iron would still have to be fixed by a diet that includes iron. My solution? I’m trying the Eat Great Food Diet. Food Diet. So far it’s been pretty amazing.
Where stuff came from:
1. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/diet
