Rules to Eat By

It's no secret that I'm an admirer of Michael Pollan. He is a journalism genius and the voice of reason when it comes to America's conflicted relationship with food. So I was semi-bummed to stumble upon his "Food Rules" reader project on GOOD the other day because I had let a WHOLE YEAR go by without knowing about it. Well, my consolation is that it's better late than never!

Out of the 20 submissions that Pollan picked from thousands, the one above is my favorite. It's also something that I often tell participants in my nutrition classes and emphasize especially to parents of little kids. The "yay high" ones who stomp their feet and cry until their faces turn red because they want "need" their Flaming Hot Cheetos or Oreos. Well, if they were really hungry, they would gladly snatch up that apple or box of raisins. Heck, they would probably even eat the blades of grass out in the parking lot.

Check out the other 19 pearls of wisdom submitted by Times readers here.

Image credit: nytimes.com and Roger Kent