"Forks over knives"

After talking about cutlery yesterday and knives the day before, I'm staying in the cutlery section just a bit longer. 'Forks over knives' a documentary I saw for the first time in 2011, just after it came out. Is a documentary about how food can be our medicine. It proclaims that we have never been this sick, obesity, heart diseases, cancer, the whole works. And even with the technology and knowledge the medical world has now, they can't heal us.

'Forks over knives' shows how changing your eating habits and your food can make you better. Reverse the done damage and in a long run prevent diseases. Just by changing your animal-based foods into plant-based foods. The animal-based food contains everything that comes from an animal. The obvious one is of course meat, but also eggs, milk and other diary products. The plant-based diet contains everything that comes from plants, vegetables, grains, fruits, nuts and all that you can make from that. In other words, vegan.

'Forks over knives' clip from the documentary, 2011

Since I saw this movie the first time, I now watch it once or twice a year. Honestly I have to say, I don't like the official trailers. They are to American for my taste, scaring you with numbers and facts about diseases and deaths. My advice, don't watch the official trailers, watch the clip I choose. Or even better the whole movie. 

What makes the documentary so interesting for me, is their research on the American foods next to the Chinese. On how the US has a animal-based diet and is struggling with all these diseases. Where every person eats a big piece of meat for dinner, eggs for breakfast, milk with their lunch. Next to the Chinese plant-based diet. Where a whole family will share a small piece of meat, drink soy or nut milk and protein in the form of tofu. I grew up in a world where both diets are practiced. Depending on the nationality of our meal. But we would never eat a lot of meat.

If cutlery defines eating, and eating defines us, than our choice of cutlery is crucial. Forks for a plant-based diet and knives for a animal-based diet. But who ever eats just with a fork or just a knife? Don't you mostly use them together? I believe we humans are omnivores, we are made to eat everything. So just a plant-based or animal-based diet is not in our nature. There should be a healthy balance between the two. I think almost everyone who eats meat, eats to much of it. The solution will be, use chopsticks. Go Chinese! Not going plant-based all the way, but cutting down on meats and other animal-based foods, we would all be healthier, definitely.

'Forks over knives' made me think and contemplate about my own food, changing my diet little by little every time I watch it. Watch the movie, not to change your life, but as food for thought.