Food

I always wanted to believe that sugar and fat were acquired tastes. "My dad used to give me Hershey's bars when I was a kid so that's why I like them today." Or, "Those fries are gross because I never got used to them as a kid."

I always wanted to believe that was the case so I could blame my taste buds on my parents. But all too often, personal accountability shines up on the marquee.

On a similar note, Megan and I were talking about control and how food consumption is something we have control over. All too often we tend to get carried away trying to make up for a lack of control in other areas of our lives by allowing ourselves to eat unhealthy foods. I never thought of it that way but now I can buy into the theory of how self-confidence can affect your weight (I'd think primarily your diet but exercise as well). If you have a high self-worth, you don't worry about being controlled in other aspects of your life and then focus on keeping control of the things you eat. If you change your outlook on what you eat, and take control of wanting to eat healthy, it should be just as easy to pass on that ice cream sandwich as it is to scarf down those cookies.

Granted, we were discussing this over a bowl of fried potato wedges covered in cheese and bacon, followed by fried cheese filled ravioli and a philly cheese steak sandwich. A change of outlook on life doesn't often come over dinner. It generally takes at least a day to kick in.

On a similar note, our son, Noah, has quite a bit of a problem. Noah is not really a big eater...or an eater at all for that matter. He chooses to get his nutrition through liquid formula, and nothing else. He'll occasionally suck down a few spoonfuls of pureed veges or some yogurt but rarely will he get through an entire "meal". Often, we'll give him something "solid" like pureed carrots and the second it hits his tongue, he starts gagging like it's poison. If it wasn't so frustrating, it would be hilarious. He has, in the past, gagged to the point of throwing all his formula up because a baby puff touched his tongue. I think Noah has taken the control issue to a whole new level.

Let's hope in the near future, he'll decide food isn't all bad.