Owning our health in a world that’s trying to fatten us up.
It's time to stop playing the victim card. (An unusually snarky commentary on health excuses and why I hate them.)
Good morning and happy Tuesday, health heroes.
Dr. Alice Burron here, and welcome to another newsletter. By now you know this letter for its in-depth coverage and deep-dives on health and wellness. (And if you’re new here — that’s what this newsletter is about!)
But today I’m sharing something a little different. A bit of a tangent, so bear with me: as a health educator, there’s nothing I find more difficult to deal with than overcoming a victim mentality when it comes to our health.
As your friend and educator in the world of health and wellness, you might be curious about the things that personally drive me crazy, keep me up at night, or get me ranting in conversation. This is one of those things.
Today isn’t a deep dive. It’s a rant.
Let’s face it—yes, the food industry is a mess. It’s a giant candy store that’s trying to push its sugar-loaded wares onto us at every turn. The shelves are overflowing with processed foods, and even the so-called “healthy” snacks are usually just dressed-up junk.
It’s easy to say that we’re victims of this environment. After all, how are we supposed to make good choices when kale costs more than a family-size bag of chips?
But here’s the thing: we do have brains. We aren’t being held at gunpoint by the nearest fast food drive- thru (last I checked, our cars come with brakes). The narrative that we’re helpless victims who have no choice but to eat poorly because ‘the food industry made us do it’ is not only flawed—it’s downright disempowering.
Yes, our environment influences us, and yes, those influences can harm our health. But let’s not pretend we’re powerless leaves on the wind.
We are clever, resourceful, and perfectly capable of taking action, even in a world that seems hell-bent on fattening us up. The truth is, we can choose to eat less, eat better, and move more. Genetics may play a role, but epigenetics can work in our favor if we give it a little nudge.
The power isn’t in our genes—it’s in our hands.
Flawed logic alert: excuses edition.
I’ve heard it all when it comes to justifying bad habits. And frankly, I’m over it. When I overindulge, I confess it out loud — I don’t blame the turkey for jumping onto my plate or the cookies migrating into my mouth.
It’s time we say what we do out loud, and not hide it behind an excuse.
Let’s address a few popular excuses and see if they hold up.
💸 Healthy food is too expensive!
Sure, organic salmon is pricier than a frozen pizza, but so is that $6 pumpkin spice latte. If we’re being honest, it’s not that we can’t afford better food; we’re just not prioritizing it. It’s like choosing Netflix over the gym and then blaming bad weather for being out of shape.
In a world rife with food bloggers, nutritionists, and the vast, infinite world wide web, there are great and affordable places to learn to eat better. Here’s one of my favorites.
Claiming that we’re powerless to the wiles of Big Food doesn’t solve our problem, it makes us weaker, disempowering us from taking charge of our own well-being.
🧬 It’s just my genetics.
Your genes are telling you to order a double cheeseburger instead of the grilled chicken salad? I’m sorry but… come on.
Genetics may set the stage, but lifestyle changes are the actors that determine the plot twist.
Your DNA isn’t holding you hostage—it’s just waiting for better direction.
🍟 There are just too many temptations out there.
Absolutely! There will always be temptations because life is basically an endless buffet. But if your car automatically pulls into the drive-thru when you pass by, you might need a different kind of intervention—like a reminder that your foot is in control of the brake pedal.
🔍 I don’t have time to read all the labels or do all the research!
Like anything worth doing in life, taking a little time up front can save loads of heartache later. Of course it’s more work to build a grocery list, read a label at the grocery store, or sit down to plan a week’s worth of meals.
You might feel like you can’t afford to spend the time doing it, when in reality, a little advanced planning goes a long way.
And in today’s day and age, you can ask Alexa questions while you’re cooking dinner, listen to educational podcasts while multitasking, or use AI to come up with a grocery list of ingredients that fit your needs.
The world might be more overcrowded and confusing as ever, but you know what? You have access to tools that can help you take charge, even in a loud world.
🥀 I’m too tired. I don’t have the time, I work a lot and I’m exhausted.
The irony of this statement? The better you eat, the better you feel, and the more positive your habits (and life) become. This goes for any of the Core 4 — nutrition, sleep, hydration, and exercise.
The longer you sink into a cycle of poor habits, the harder it is, and the further removed from your own power you become.
The hardest part is showing up.
Shifting the Mindset: Strategic Actions Over Victimhood
What we need to do is change our mindset from “I can’t help it” to “I can do better.”
This isn’t about achieving perfect health (if there even is such a thing); it’s about making better choices in a world that makes it too easy to choose poorly.
If we want to overcome our environment’s influence, we have to outsmart it. That means swapping some of those nightly potato chips for a handful of nuts or prepping meals for the week so that convenience doesn’t always mean unhealthy.
You know for yourself the areas in which you struggle, make excuses, or refuse to look something in the eye. And you alone can change those things — it’s not anyone else’s responsibility.
Let’s not let ourselves off the hook so easily. We’re not just hapless victims in a game rigged against us. We’re active players with the ability to make strategic moves.
Yes, the environment might deal us a few bad hands, but we’re not stuck playing a bad hand every time. Sometimes, we want to make poor health choices because they sound good, are convenient, or we don’t feel motivated. Or maybe we’re just over-worked (something I can relate to, as many of you can).
I respect someone who admits the situation rather than excusing the action, because then we can do something about it — and prevent it from happening again and again.
The Real Deal: It’s Not All or Nothing
This isn’t about shaming anyone. We’ve all caved into cravings now and then (I’m not above drinking too much coffee or eating too many homemade pumpkin chocolate chip cookies like I just did this week).
We’ve all had moments of taking the easier route, rather than the one that requires more energy. These moments happen all the time, and we do need to have the grace for ourselves to make the wrong choices every once in a while. (Sometimes, a little bit of bad can actually be good for you.)
But if we can’t admit that we have the power to make better choices, then we’re just handing over our health destiny to the nearest vending machine or targeted ad. It’s time to stop playing the victim card whenever we’re tempted and start outsmarting the game. We’re more than capable.
It’s our health, and it’s high time we owned it.
Whew, I’ll step off of the soapbox now!
As a health educator, it’s my job to help people make better health decisions. It always starts with taking ownership — and that can be hard when the world is flooding you with temptation and information.
As always, I’m here to help. Sound off in the comments, and you can always send me a message!
Have a great week,
Dr. Alice
A little more about Dr. Alice Burron and The Health Navigator Group:
You can find more about The Health Navigator Group at our website: www.thehealthnavigator.org
On Instagram: @the.health.navigator
And learn more about Dr. Alice Burron at her website: draliceburron.com
Or via her personal Instagram: @dr_burron
You can even connect with her on LinkedIn, if you want to be professional about it. 👓
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