past and present diets. What do we start with? Every time you blink there’s another one that promises to solve all your health problems. Let’s step back to see how we got to this point.
In the past, people ate whatever they could gather, hunt or grow. The Mediterranean diet was not a trend; it was simply dinner. Simple, right? Fresh vegetables, olive oil and some freshly caught fish. You have the Inuits up north who live off blubber, and anything else they can catch in the icy tundra. What a contrast.
The 20th century was a time of rapid change. The processed food industry exploded on the scene. Instantly, everyone was eating out of boxes and cans, and “fast” food became the most popular. Fad diets began to appear like daisies along with this convenience craze. Remember when cabbage soup was the rage for weeks on end? Did you ditch carbs as if they were out of fashion? Oh, the good old days.
Then something amazing happened. The people started to pay attention to the food they put in their bodies. Organic was no longer just for hippies, and farm to table wasn’t a fancy term that chefs used; it became ingrained in our minds.
Diets have become as diverse as Spotify playlists. Veganism is not only good for Mother Earth, but also for your health. Paleo-fanatics eat like cavemen, or at least the version they follow. Biohacking is another option – why not optimize your body as if it were the latest iPhone?
Intermittent fasting is a trend that has really caught my attention. What’s important is not what you eat, but when you eat. It’s a new way to take “timing is important”.
What’s the next diet on the menu? Climate change is a constant threat and there are more people to feed each day. Things will have to change. We may soon be eating lab-grown meats and enjoying cricket protein bars.
The journey has been long, from the hunter-gatherer era to today’s debate about whether to add butter to our coffee to boost brain power. It’s not just the amount of change in our diets that strikes me, but also why. Survival, convenience, health or ethics? There are many more.
Maybe what we are really looking for at the end of the meal (or day) is not just another diet, but something that feels good – sustainable for us and for the planet.
Who knows what the next dinner trend will be? As long as I won’t be forced to live on cabbage soup or my grandmother’s lasagna, I’m willing to go along with this culinary adventure. North Park plumbing is not only about keeping the water flowing, but also about reconnecting us with our past and paving the path for sustainable living.
It’s also a great way to bond with others over common plumbing problems. Don’t need a PhD and throw in some training here and there, because humans can be the weakest link.