Eating Clean - An Ode to Our German Friends

We had two visitors from Germany this weekend, lovely Christina and Werner. It was a surprise visit for mamma's birthday and she was immensely pleased to say the least!

They were of course curious about the way we eat. Perhaps because both mamma and pappa are down to the same weight as in their twenties? 

Our standard blurb on our eating habits usually go something like: "Mostly meat/ fish/ eggs and vegetables. And butter."

I can't vouch for the flowers being edible. The heart mince burgers were awesome, though. 

Their reaction was slightly different to what I am used to. You see, they actually eat just like we do, except for the potatoes, bread and beer. They weren't the least bit fazed by our meals. It was just food. 

And I guess that is the problem with our current food culture. Many of us have forgotten what real food is and rely on processed products to nourish us. We don't need to look far to see the devastating effects this has had on us: obesity, diabetes, cancer and heart disease are so common that we simply accept them as a part of our lives. 

Perhaps some cultures are a bit more protected from this than others. When most Swedes jumped on the ultra-processed low fat/ high sugar bandwagon of the 80s and 90s, our German friends (and probably most of continental Europe) stuck to their butter, full fat cheese and charcuteries. 

I'm not saying there aren't any overweight people in Germany, mind you. Just that the leap to healthier eating habits may be a bit shorter for some our European brothers and sisters.