Warning: Long rant.

I just seem to be getting more and more confused by this. If we consider this WOL to be more healthy - then why do we still give crap with added refined sugar and carbs to our friends and family? Why, when we do the shopping and cooking are we still giving them items that we know to be detrimental to their health??

I mean - we care about our loved ones, right? Our children, husbands, wives, friends and family who visit us in our home.

When we as a group know as much about the negative health benefits to eating sugar and refined carbohydrates - why do we continue to feed that to them? Does it really do them any good?

I don't want to assume that everyone does this, but I read a post today about a lady who bought something, later found out it had sugar so she gave it to her child, and then got the non-sugar kind for herself.

I understand not wanting to waste food - but come on.

I'd like to know - what, if any, changes have you made to the food you serve other people since you've discovered low-carb.

I guess this would make a good poll, but I don't know how to go about doing that - so I'm just posing a question.

This isn't just a matter of weight loss to you, right? It's about health, too. If you aren't willing to put this food in your body because it makes you sick and fat - then why continue to serve it. Don't we say - if it's something you can't live without for a day, then it's prolly something you should avoid. Americans are fat - and getting fatter. Why? Well, everyone on this forum knows why. Starchy carbs, sugars, and refined/chemical laden foods.

Am I the only one who sees it as hypocritical to continue to serve that dangerous food to our families? When we KNOW just how bad it is - not just for us who are fat and unhealthy - but for others. Eventually every one of them will suffer negative health effects of that kind of intake. It's inevitable. Just look at the millions of expanding wastebands, kids and adults with diabetes, heart attacks, cancer, etc. in our nation - and the ones in other countries where our influence has reached.

I beg you to consider not just what you family is saying they want to eat - but what is really the healthiest lifestyle for them. Don't come back at me with "Well they don't need to lose weight" - I know they may not need to do that - my point is that there are other health risks. Sugar consumption is linked to so many diseases - cancer, diabetes, heart problems, PCOS, etc. The research is growing and growing that shows that sugar and refined foods are a big contributor to our bodies diminishing health.

Look at your children - if they eat carbs and sugar all day - do you want them to continue that for 20-50 years. What do you think their health is going to be like after 20, 30, 50 years or more of that kind of lifestyle. Do they get enough exercise? Look at hubby, is he getting a 'beer-belly'?

Think of every single reason you love low-carb. Energy, clear-headedness, lower blood sugar/blood pressure/cholesterol, reduced cravings, hunger, better emotional stability. Do your kids have tantrums? Don't you think your family would like to experience some of that too?

Forget what anyone says about sugar not making kids hyper. My daughter is proof positive that children shouldn't eat sugar. Just ask DCFS about her screaming and tantrums and her inability to control herself. (BTW, she doesn't get sugar anymore, and she's doing much better.)

Have you thought about the correlation between sugar consumption in our lives and the rates of things like ADD? How about birth defects. PCOS. Women having trouble getting pregnant and having to use drugs to bear a child. Is it just me or have some of these problems just exploded.

Sugar has no nutritional value - no redeeming qualities. If your family loves sweets - switch to fruits, or start making their desserts with Splenda. Go to whole grains, not white bread and muffins, candy, etc. Make a few changes that will show you care. They may grumble - but eventually they'll thank you. And, even if they don't, you'll know that you did what you could to care for them.

We can't control whether our loves ones are hit with a bus on the way to work or school, but we can control what groceries we buy. What foods we make.

I am not saying that I am perfect. I've been doing low-carb for over three years on and off. But, I let my family have what I wouldn't allow myself to have. Sort of vicarious living. But, it's not helped them in the long run. So, from last week on - my entire family is sugar free. I am throwing it all out. I don't even want to give the food to my friends. I don't think that's fair to them and their health. I'm not going to perpetuate the unhealthy food. And, I am darn sure not going to support the sugar industry. I don't agree with what they are doing to us to make a few bucks, so it's a matter of principle for me not to buy their poison.

Sorry this is too long. Sorry, I get a little hot-headed. I just feel strongly about this. I think if every family that had a low-carber stopped shopping for the processed food with refined this, chemical that - the food manufacturers might actually feel the hurt. Realize that we as a nation aren't going to take it laying down anymore. We want real food, stuff that's good for us. Not this genetically manufactured stuff with added sugar and chemicals. Let them feel it in the pocketbook, the ONLY thing that they care about.

And let your family feel the love you feel for them with every low-carb meal you serve.

Melissa