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Comment by soroushjp | Hacker News Reader

Hi skilled, author here.

I'm not sure what you mean exactly. I don't think I'm advocating for a "meat and dairy" diet -- actually those were on the very lowest quantity end of my recommended food groups, and that's if you'd personally like to include it at all (plant-based whole food diet is fine too, IMO).

Regarding organic food, I left it in the bonus section with a couple of high quality references so that people can make up their own mind. I gave my personal decision but don't advocate for it for others -- there's not a strong medical consensus on the subject and I think it comes down to some personal views.

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Hey Soroush,

Thanks for replying. I am pretty sure I was having a bit of a slow morning and didn't think my initial reply through.

I do agree with you on all points about eating real food. I think it's crazy how most stores and supermarkets consist of 99% dead food and 1% organic. I think it's crazy that you have to look for the organic/natural section in the store opposed to it being the first choice.

Nevertheless, I do not agree with using science to depict the topic of fruit vs meat or X vs meat. As someone with firsthand experience (5 years vegetarian and 1 vegan), there is absolutely no need for dairy, meat, or other animal products to live an extremely healthy life.

In fact, an organic lifestyle is not even in the same bracket as animal produce. Most stuff we buy in stores today - meat, etc. - is extremely mass-produced with a ton of hormonal injections for faster growth and production.

If anyone can justify that then they need serious help because it's not normal.

Grass fed? Perhaps, but the conditions would need to be just right. Elk hunting and such I can agree with to a degree; as long as overpopulation is an actual thing.

Of course, I love latte and cereal, so hell, I guess that makes me a hypocrite. But perhaps I am just that passionate, without all the science bullshit shoved down peoples' throats.

Organic is a separate category and doesn't just mean fruits and vegetables, you can have organic meat as well. Also its not as easy for fruit and veg to say organic is always better, look at the 'dirty dozen' lists and there are more important things, like leafy greens to buy organic, vs something like avocado which has a thick skin so is generally less harmful to buy non-organic to the consumer, especially because most people are not rich, the issue gets more complex.

I thought the author did a nice succinct oversight, most people don't want to read books on the subject, or they would read book on the subject. According to my diet Meat and Animal products are some of the most health-promoting foods, but the quality of the environment they were raised matters quite a bit.

With most Americans it becomes more an issue of we have forgotten how to cook our own food from base high-quality ingredients, or lack the time to do it.

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