The Big Health Controversy

Healthy. The word is as loaded as they come. It describes what you eat, how you exercise, and your lifestyle behavior. It's abs, muscles, skinny, fat and weight loss—all in one. We all strive to be healthy and yet there's one problem: There's no consensus on the best way to improve your health. 

Sure, people have similar ideas: Being active, eating the right foods, and not engaging in "unhealthy" decisions. But the details are usually different. One person's dietary savior is another's scraps. Which leads to the question: Do we need a standardized approach in order to become a healthier nation? 

The question occurred to me on Saturday as I engaged in a regrettable argument. I was trying to defend my belief that eating eggs is good for you and does not pose a threat to your health or cholesterol. Understand this: I love eggs. After my fiancé, my family, and the University of Colorado, eggs might be my fourth biggest love (I’m kidding…kind of). 

But what started as an opportunity to share information turned into a digital battle. (ok, I admit—the argument took place on Twitter. Don’t judge me). I shared the reasons for my beliefs (there’s plenty of research that shows eggs don’t affect your cholesterol, you can read some of them here, here, and here), while my counterpart questioned the funding of the studies and my educational background. In all honesty, I didn’t mind the opposing viewpoint. But at some point I realized that this argument—like most on health—was futile. After all, I’m not trying to convert people to eat as many eggs as I do. I simply wanted to share information. I let my counterpart continue taking shots, as I walked way. After all, debates are great but there's nothing healthy about pointless fighting. 

After the dusted settled, the bigger question still remained: How do we handle all of the diverse opinions in nutrition and fitness? And do we need one platform for health?

The truth is, health always has been—and always will be—an open-ended conversation. That’s because your health is an intimate topic. It’s your choices, your life, and your body. We can all agree that some behaviors are healthier than others. I tend to base most of my decisions on scientific fact and published research, and it’s the way we’re trying to approach information at LIVESTRONG.COM. We strive to provide the most accurate and up-to-date information on health, fitness, and nutrition, while understanding that some viewpoints might be contradictory. That’s because we view our site as a health buffet: We offer up the best information and you choose what works best for you.

Some might say this is means we don’t understand health. I’d argue that this approach is a more realistic approach to healthy living. Just think about it: There’s more than one way to be fit. You can run, lift weights, cycle, swim, or walk—and still be active. You can eat protein, avoid carbs, or indulge in fat—and find your dietary balance. The specifics don’t matter as much as the intent and the basis of your decision making.

Rather than telling people what is right, we need to do a better job of informing people what is wrong. Call them myths, wives-tales, or lies. Remove those, and no matter how many different opinions you find, we’ll end up with a nation that is uniformly making healthier decisions. And that’s an outcome that won’t start any arguments.