Food Philosophy

Food Rules:
1) no artificial ingredients
2) no red meat or pork
2) at least 2-3 servings of vegetables per day
3) no soda
4) limited cow dairy (I had been free of drinking milk for several years, but have been basically totally dairy free for about 3 months-it's a little experiment I'm trying)
5) as naturally as possible (whole grains, organic when affordable, natural sugar, etc.)
6) balance balance balance -I do believe that eating too much of any one thing can be bad and may even lead to sensitivities or intolerances. I try doing such things as vary my grains and rotate between vegetarian meals, poultry, and seafood

Food is an amazing thing. A source of joy for some, a source of demons for others, lives are centered around it in some way or another. I have come to find that there must be a balanced combination of enjoyment and necessity. Obviously we need food to survive but there needs to and can be an element of pure satisfaction.
When I think back to the types of things I put into my body while growing up, it's a wonder I don't have bigger intestinal problems than I do. I refuse to follow the ideology of some doctors that food is not directly related to our health. When I first was diagnosed with Crohn's I bought several books that discussed dealing with the disease on a more holistic level. These theories definitely were more aligned with my beliefs on healthy living and I question my gastro on his views on diet and the disease. Like the traditionally educated doctor that he was, he told me to avoid anything that seemed to bother me and otherwise follow a well-balanced diet. I understand that food affects everyone differently and that doctors fear that by giving information out, they may influence patients to limit themselves in a way that may not be totally necessary. We are all predisposed to tolerate and digest differently and what may negatively affect one person may have no affect on someone else. But I am blown away by the number of people on Crohn's message boards and forums who have made no changes to their diet. How can a disease of the digestive system in some way not be related to food??
Anyways, when I first became sick I was convinced that I was sensitive to everything. I had already been a vegetarian for several years, and thought that perhaps dairy, gluten, and yeast could be the nasty triggers aggravating my intestines. I experimented here and there, but nothing long enough or consistent enough to make any conclusions. After being my most sick and having such bad stomach pains that I could eat very little regardless of its ingredients, I had dropped down to about 90lbs and needed to just eat anything to get somewhat healthy.
The main lesson I learned from my illness is that our bodies are quite frail. Yes they can do amazing things, and in a perfect world are designed in a way as to protect us, but we must treat them like the delicate machines that they are. Food is fuel and we should only put the highest quality fuel in these machines if we expect them to work at their most optimal level. This is what I think about every time I feed myself. It is quite easy now to stay away from the sugary drinks, candy, and snack foods I loved as a child. Some items are like an addiction and once you can get past the cravings, you come out on the other side where the thoughts of them are no longer tempting. I can have a sweet tooth at times, but I have found that there are healthy versions of almost anything you may be desiring.
I am not about deprivation. I love food far to much to limit myself from what I enjoy, but one must venture forth on the food path with wisdom, good intent, and educated decisions. When our bodies turn on us, the only way we can survive is to give ourselves all the nutrition and energy we can to fight the good fight. I use food to fight my battle every single day...at least it's a delicious one.