In the age of plenty like now, you will find that everybody has their own type of diet. Vegetarian, Vegan, Paleo, Keto, Mediteranian, DEBM, Atkins, OCD, or anything. But at the moment the diet that become trending topic is Plant based diet VS Meat Based diet.
Just to give you some idea, a plant based diet is a diet that consist mostly of vegetables and fruits and no meat at all. This diet is divided into many types : Vegetarian (Lacto/Ovo/both), Vegan, and raw vegan. While the Meat based diet are diets that heavily based on protein or fat, such s : Paleo, Ketogenic, Carnivore, Atkins.
But I'm not going to discuss about each of those diets specification or criteria - you can Google it. What concern me the most is our attitude towards the difference. I saw so many people attacking each other on Socmed, talking bad about other's diet, mocking, and even create a group full of hatred towards other diets.
To begin with, I believe that everybody has the right to choose what food they want to put inside their bodies. We are free to choose our diet. We also have our own reason why we decide to go with one diet. And once you choose a diet, and you feel it's not right for you, and then you change to other kind of diet, it doesn't mean that you should change your circle of friends and find the new one. So many people I heard is been casted away from their previous group just because they try a new approach for their diet. Or even they feel guilty whenever they eat something that is 'not allowed' for their specific diet, confess it in the group, and being super sorry and feel like a jerk for doing so, like they just confess a marriage infidelity case. E.g : if you're a vegetarian, and you eat 1 piece of salmon skin, then you are judged as a sinner and you deserve a punishment! Since when human act like a God?
It's happening to me as well.
Before, I don't follow any types of diet. I just eat whatever and whenever I want to eat. And when I heard one of my friend decided to be a vegetarian, I feel happy for her. I always amazed with people that go to certain extend for their health, and I believe a vegetarian diet is a good thing for her. So I support her by asking her whether there's a food or restaurant that she can eat comfortably as a vegetarian whenever we going out for lunch, I/m willing to step back and adjust to her needs. Because I appreciate her effort to be healthier.
But then, when I decided to follow Ketogenic diet, the response that got was not as I expected. Instead of support and respect from her, she acts like her diet is way more superior than my diet, and even she keep saying that I have to stop from my diet because it's unhealthy. Even when I still eat all the craps from my 'Standard Diet' she didn't say anything and just go as usual. But when I decide to follow a diet that I hope will make me better, her reaction was unexpected. I thought by giving her example of how much I support her when she just turned into a vegetarian will give her ideas of how I would like to be treated as well - respect.
What I want to emphasize from this story is, everybody has their own battle. Especially about anything that they decide to put into their body. Sometimes, it's not just about a trend, a way to slim down, or a random thought. You will never know that their diet is about life and death decision. You will never know how many things a person should give up from her diet just to be able to awake and feel less painful in her body. And you will never know how many nights a person have gone through with stacks of pills and hospital beds she needs to sleep in until she find the diet that at least 'ease' her agony.
From this experience, I will try to respect all diets. What we can do is just to keep searching and 'fine-tuning' what's the right diet for our own body without judging others. What's HEALTHY actually? 50 years ago scientist said that egg white is better than the yolk. But now, they said the yolk has better loads then the white. Doctor said that vegetables are good, but when they found out you have gout then vegetable will be bad for you. Everybody has their own definition of healthy. So let's respect each other. Rather than pointing out the difference of each diets, why don't we talk about something that we have in common from our diet? Isn't it more interesting? To agree on something we have in common? While we keep our mind open for any new science that will be revealed and listen to our body more than we listen our society?
Many years ago, before an antiseptic was found, a young doctor named Ignaz Semmelweis, found out that there is a microorganism called bacteria live everywhere, especially on the hands of the doctors. And that bacteria was the cause of high mortality of many women that gave birth because doctors handle many corpses and just go straightly to help woman labor process. The senior doctor was so offended by this young-rookie doctor because they thought that doctor hands are the cleanest and keep throwing bad words towards the young doctor., and even said that this young doctor is crazy. Semmelweis end up in asylum and died by the sickness the he found out before (Sepsis), such an irony. Years later, medical community agree that there is a microorganism called bacteria and an antiseptic is needed.
Many centuries before, Galileo Galilei was accused of defying God just because he agreed with heliocentric theory and say that The Sun is the center of our universe and all the planets revolve around it - because his theory is against the majority of the higher society that time. He was then send to house arrest until his death. Years after, the world agrees that The Sun indeed is the center of the universe. And since the beginning, Galileo Galilei had no intention to defy God at all, indeed he became more religious than before. He was just try to find 'an answer'.
Do you still need more historical record?
Let's be wiser.
Science is evolving.
When you are on one diet, it does not mean that you are more superior than others.
