The challenge: no eating meat, fish, dairy, eggs or anything derived from the animal kingdom for seven days. The irony: She partook in this challenge while still wearing her leather shoes and perfume derived from whale fat among other animal-based consumer products. Two years ago, the "queen of whatever is trendy" attempted a 21-day vegan cleanse of her own, but apparently was not impressed enough with the lifestyle for it to stick. This year she lowered the bar to seven days, but also dragged 378 poor saps on her payroll into this Godforsaken baconless world.
The results were apparently mixed, though I'm sure the challenge's sponsor, Kathy Freston, would consider the experiment a huge success. Oprah Winfrey just promoted her books and lifestyle for the second time in two years, and several of the lab rats actually had some very nice sound bites and anecdotes. I'd call that a financial success if I were Ms. Freston, too.
So here is my standard disclaimer: I don't care what you eat, and I would appreciate it if you didn't care what I eat. If you want to promote healthy eating, that's great. But don't assume that people who aren't in lock step with your lifestyle are any less healthy or happy. I recently read some of the results and reactions, and question the interpretation on Oprah's site.
------
"Some staffers had a harder time with the challenge than others. Co-Producer Veronica says she used to eat a lot of fast food, and eating vegan left her feeling "angry." Kathy told her it was because she had an addiction."
Addiction? Color me reactionary, but Kathy Freston has no business diagnosing anyone with an addiction. She's not a doctor. Or a psychologist. She's not even a nutritionist. In fact, I'm pretty sure she isn't even a certified yoga instructor. Her credentials? She began modeling at the age of 16, married too young and was involved in a bad relationship. Re-married a wealthy producer (who happens to be currently working for the Oprah Winfrey network) and wrote a book about her previous relationship. Later, she proclaimed herself a wellness expert and began writing other books. Thanks for the addiction diagnosis, but do you mind if I get a second opinion from my wife's equally qualified hair colorist?
As for the anger; I'd be angry too if I were staring at a bowl full of kelp for lunch. Me, personally, I'd rather get punched in the groin by a five year old with a runny nose and bad table manners.
-------
"By the third day, Rich says he felt better than he had in 10 years. Before the challenge, Rich says he was taking six to eight antacids a day and suffering from migraine headaches. "And let's qualify it, I ate horribly," he says. "I ate poor foods. Now I don't. And I lost 11 pounds."
Eleven pounds in one week? Someone obviously removed part of Rich's brain, which was included in total weight loss. Note to Rich: you can eat healthy, lose weight and still be an omnivore. Really. There are, like, hundreds of us who do it.
-------
"By the end of the week, 300 of the 378 Harpo staffers who signed up successfully completed the challenge. Collectively, they lost 444 pounds and gained 84 pounds...and used a record amount of toilet paper.
78 Harpo staffers have a modicum of intelligence. 378 people lost a total of 360 pounds (444 minus 84 gained) in one week. That's less than one pound per staffer, which equates to two glasses of water. Don't aggregate the numbers to make them sound more impressive. And what about the tiolet paper consumption? Wasting normally productive time while sitting on the can, killing trees to produce "record amounts" toilet paper and wasting thousands of additional gallons of water flushing toilets. How does this factor into the green lifestyle?
Posts
