By now everyone has heard the news, unless you live on the moon. Paula Deen has Type 2 Diabetes, has had it for three years, and was hired by a pharmaceutical company to promote their diabetes medication. All the while continuing her television show on the Food Network.
I’ve always loved Paula, if I already didn’t have a great mother I’d want her to be my mother. I admire that she recovered from agoraphobia, that she was divorced with two teenage sons and $200 and managed to survive by cooking, which she could do without leaving her house. I love the way she talks, her laugh, the way she loves her kids and grandchildren and believes they are the most amazing people in the world.
I used to watch a lot of cooking shows, and I would actually try recipes from most of them, but not Paula’s. She didn’t make anything that I thought was remotely healthy, but she was fun to watch.
I browsed through her recipes on the Food Network website, and there are some typical southern dishes – jambalaya, fried chicken, bread pudding, there are some salads – chicken salad, potato salad, shrimp salad, and some things that don’t sound too bad until she piles the creamy salty sauce on top. But here is a small list of the most sinful recipes that I found:
- bacon cheeseburger meatloaf
- beer battered fried shrimp
- fried cherry walnut pies
- french fries with mayonnaise dip
- strawberry-cream cheese stuffed french toast
- cheesiest fried chicken empanadas with chili con queso dip
- fried ravioli
- fried baked potato
- skillet fried apple pie
- fried sardines
Those are just the standard fat filled, mostly fried, dairy laden recipes. French fries with mayonnaise dip? Do people eat that? And who would think to fry a cherry pie, a chicken empanada, ravioli or a baked potato? And sardines? Paula is fond of frying, having grown up in the south, that was common. For stuff like chicken, shrimp and potatoes at least.
Now she upped the ante with the deep fried items:
- ultimate fantasy deep-fried cheesecake
- deep fried truffle cupcakes
- deep fried chocolate pound cake
- deep fried lasagna
- deep fried mac and cheese
- deep fried pickles
I just don’t even know what to say about this. Even back when I ate junk food I don’t think I would have eaten deep fried cheesecake.
So we can assume that Paula not only cooks this way, but eats this way as well. I find it hard to believe that she eats fried foods three times a day, and buttery, sugary desserts after every meal, but she had to get diabetes somehow, and it’s not from eating salads. We shouldn’t be surprised by her news. I wonder how many chefs have health problems from poor nutrition. (Hey Guy Fieri, I’m talking to you! Soon it will be your turn.) Paula’s livelihood is her television shows and cookbooks, and people have come to expect a certain style of cooking from her. I would hope her viewers would know that the dishes that Paula cooks are meant to be eaten infrequently, but I tend to doubt that. I’m sure many people eat like that on a daily basis. Is Paula encouraging this style of eating? I don’t really think so, she is not telling anyone what to eat. She never claims her recipes are healthy. People choose to cook and eat what they want.
And Paula has chosen not to change her lifestyle, but to take medication. I believe that most Americans would also make that choice. It sure is easier to pop a pill than to change one’s diet. Take cholesterol medication and you can eat all the steak and ribs you want! Take high blood pressure medication and you can eat all the fat and salt you want! Take diabetes medication and you can eat all the sugar and deep fried cheesecake you want!
(There are people who truly need to take these medications, because diet and lifestyle changes don’t lower their cholesterol or blood pressure. These medications are very important for people who really need them.)
A win-win situation? Pharmaceutical companies win, doctors win, and we all get to eat what we want. But something is seriously wrong with this picture. When I was given the choice to take cholesterol medication or change my diet and lose weight, I did not take the medication choice. It was a wake up call – I knew I was overweight and I didn’t want to be overweight anymore. The high cholesterol and blood pressure were the catalysts that pushed me forward into making change. My career didn’t depend on producing evil food luckily. What would I have done if it had, I don’t know.
Would Paula be a good role model for others with Type 2 Diabetes if she changed her diet, changed her recipes, and changed her television shows? I think so. But on the other hand, it is highly likely that no one would be interested in her anymore.
By now everyone has heard the news, unless you live on the moon. Paula Deen has Type 2 Diabetes, has had it for three years, and was hired by a pharmaceutical company to promote their diabetes medication. All the while continuing her television show on the Food Network.
I’ve always loved Paula, if I already didn’t have a great mother I’d want her to be my mother. I admire that she recovered from agoraphobia, that she was divorced with two teenage sons and $200 and managed to survive by cooking, which she could do without leaving her house. I love the way she talks, her laugh, the way she loves her kids and grandchildren and believes they are the most amazing people in the world.
I used to watch a lot of cooking shows, and I would actually try recipes from most of them, but not Paula’s. She didn’t make anything that I thought was remotely healthy, but she was fun to watch.
I browsed through her recipes on the Food Network website, and there are some typical southern dishes – jambalaya, fried chicken, bread pudding, there are some salads – chicken salad, potato salad, shrimp salad, and some things that don’t sound too bad until she piles the creamy salty sauce on top. But here is a small list of the most sinful recipes that I found:
Those are just the standard fat filled, mostly fried, dairy laden recipes. French fries with mayonnaise dip? Do people eat that? And who would think to fry a cherry pie, a chicken empanada, ravioli or a baked potato? And sardines? Paula is fond of frying, having grown up in the south, that was common. For stuff like chicken, shrimp and potatoes at least.
Now she upped the ante with the deep fried items:
I just don’t even know what to say about this. Even back when I ate junk food I don’t think I would have eaten deep fried cheesecake.
So we can assume that Paula not only cooks this way, but eats this way as well. I find it hard to believe that she eats fried foods three times a day, and buttery, sugary desserts after every meal, but she had to get diabetes somehow, and it’s not from eating salads. We shouldn’t be surprised by her news. I wonder how many chefs have health problems from poor nutrition. (Hey Guy Fieri, I’m talking to you! Soon it will be your turn.) Paula’s livelihood is her television shows and cookbooks, and people have come to expect a certain style of cooking from her. I would hope her viewers would know that the dishes that Paula cooks are meant to be eaten infrequently, but I tend to doubt that. I’m sure many people eat like that on a daily basis. Is Paula encouraging this style of eating? I don’t really think so, she is not telling anyone what to eat. She never claims her recipes are healthy. People choose to cook and eat what they want.
And Paula has chosen not to change her lifestyle, but to take medication. I believe that most Americans would also make that choice. It sure is easier to pop a pill than to change one’s diet. Take cholesterol medication and you can eat all the steak and ribs you want! Take high blood pressure medication and you can eat all the fat and salt you want! Take diabetes medication and you can eat all the sugar and deep fried cheesecake you want!
(There are people who truly need to take these medications, because diet and lifestyle changes don’t lower their cholesterol or blood pressure. These medications are very important for people who really need them.)
A win-win situation? Pharmaceutical companies win, doctors win, and we all get to eat what we want. But something is seriously wrong with this picture. When I was given the choice to take cholesterol medication or change my diet and lose weight, I did not take the medication choice. It was a wake up call – I knew I was overweight and I didn’t want to be overweight anymore. The high cholesterol and blood pressure were the catalysts that pushed me forward into making change. My career didn’t depend on producing evil food luckily. What would I have done if it had, I don’t know.
Would Paula be a good role model for others with Type 2 Diabetes if she changed her diet, changed her recipes, and changed her television shows? I think so. But on the other hand, it is highly likely that no one would be interested in her anymore.