Election lunacy

Editor,

As if all the lunacy of the past week of election jockeying weren’t enough, Mayor Bloomberg had to add his spin to Michele Obama and her war on obesity. The only thing some people believe should be a choice is: To abort or not to abort. Everything else is fair game for government intervention.

I know there is an obesity problem; no one has to go farther than to take a walk in a shopping area. You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink. The same goes for kids and most veggies. We may eat peas and corn, but until we are adults, we can’t try anything new. It is a rite of passage. If anyone had put squash on my plate, I would have gone to bed without dessert; today squash it is one of my favorites.

I realize there is too much fast food available and readily eaten. Some people don’t know any better and others may be too lazy to cook. Taking a lunch packed by a mother and making her child eat the school lunch is over the top. There was nothing wrong with the lunch, but as far as I am concerned, turkey and cheese on bread with a banana and apple juice is better than chicken nuggets fried.

There are those who say, “Eat a Mediterranean diet and you will be healthier.” Or those who push whole grain. Or no fat. Or vegetarian. One diet doesn’t fit all. When I kept adding diagnoses so often, I saw my endocrinologist in Santa Barbara. She had so many people like me that she tested all of us for gluten intolerance. Finally an answer for my frustration. That was seven years ago, and I haven’t eaten gluten since. I always wondered why my left leg felt as if water were poured inside after eating bread.

The only grain I can eat without a reaction of any kind is rice. My body fighting gluten led to allergies and the rest of my problems. I always had trouble eating oatmeal and drinking orange juice as a kid. But other things that bother me are corn, chicken and can’t have soy in or on my body.

Anyone having unusual problems should have a gluten test. Elizabeth Hasselbeck on “The View” is gluten intolerant and told Bill O’Reilly when he was on the show. The other day he said he has been eating gluten free and feels better. A friend of mine once said grain is for fattening livestock.

The food police need to take care of themselves and let the rest of us find what works.

Priscilla A. Styer
Porterville

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