Comments on: How Do You Live with Someone Who Doesn’t Eat Healthy Foods?

By: Carla

Carla — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 22:27:28 +0000

Honestly, I have the willpower. lol! I don’t want it… its in the house, I have 4 kids and they like their treats (I don’t buy ‘junk’, they buy a treat from the store here and there, but I don’t bring home bags of chips, or pop, or choco bars, etc..) but they do like granola bars, pudding, etc… but I just don’t want it. I’ve worked too hard on my clean eating habits to let junk get in the way of how I feel with this lifestyle!!

By: Heather

Heather — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 18:17:11 +0000

I’m not a religiously clean eater, though I am toying with the idea. However, I lived on my own for 5 years prior to getting married. So, I just didn’t buy it. I figured I ate enough crap out in the world, I didn’t need it at home. And when I got married, my husband kind of just went along with it. Now, I tell him flat out not to buy it, or bring it in the house because I have no will power. Zero. Zilch. So if he does, it goes in the garbage when he leaves. Sorry. I warned you. I had a friend who had a “their” cupboard. It was a cupboard she never went into. Ever. It was used to the “junk” food her hubby and kids wanted. She refused to buy it, so if he did, then he put it in the cupboard and they weren’t allowe to eat it in front of her. They took it outside, to their rooms or somewhere else. She never opened the cupboard, so she never knew what was in it. I doubt I’d have that kind of self control. If I do buy junk food or soda, it goes in the basement. Out of site, out of mind…for the most part. But beaing the shopper in my house, I get the say so. If he wants something else, he can go get it…but he seldom does. Most people know what’s good for them and what’s not, and being around people who influence you one way or the other ultimately will rub off and vice versa. My DH now eats WG and snacks on fruits…something that NEVER happened 7 years ago. And I am more mindfull of the quality of food I eat, because I have friends who are mindfull. It’s easeir to eat healthy when those around you find it important too.

By: Louise

Louise — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 02:35:47 +0000

The key is to have your fellow housemates supporting your change and to be respectful. As you are not pressuring them to eat your food, they should not be pressuring you to eat theirs.

Kate, I had a housemate like yours .. always with the adage “one won’t hurt”. I tried to communicate to her why eating clean was important, but to no avail. I got tired of having to explain why I didn’t want this chocolate bar or that drink. I moved out in the end.

As I see it, if a friend was trying to quit smoking, I would not leave cigarettes lying around, or take the stance that “one won’t hurt” or “you have been good, you deserve a treat”. Why should it be different with food.

By: Angelika

Angelika — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 11:29:07 +0000

Hi, I live with 2 people one of them is an 8 year old child. The other adult means well and would love to eat clean, but often times brings a lot of unhealthy snacks home. It’s really hard for me not to partake in his indulgences.

We don’t divide the fridge or cupboards. I just have to be the strong one and pretend that there is nothing unhealthy to eat in the house.

By: kate

kate — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 19:51:13 +0000

Thanks for this. I just started eating clean a few weeks ago and I feel much healthier and better. I used to get eczema and headaches fairly often and I haven’t experienced either since I started sticking to whole foods.

I live with a female roommate and sometimes I feel like she’s pressuring me to eat her processed foods. I understand she may feel it’s polite to offer, but she’ll also leave out things like chocolate or muffins with a note that says she thinks I deserve a treat.

It’s been hard to resist temptation, but I’m going to try and focus on looking at this food as evil – or non-food that just plain makes me feel crappy.

By: Maggie

Maggie — Mon, 25 May 2009 23:38:01 +0000

I’ve been eating clean for almost a year–the rest of my family does not. In transitioning to this way of eating I simply stopped thinking of the junk food around me as food. If it is not a whole food (entirely), it simply isn’t a food so therefore, I don’t eat it. I also think of it like I think of cigarettes: In my twenties (I’m almost 44) I used to smoke socially. Now, the thought of taking a drag just seems alien to me. I sometimes think of junk food the same way–as something I used to do that now seems crazy to continue doing now that I am old enough and smart enough to realize the consequences.

By: Kristy

Kristy — Fri, 15 May 2009 20:56:51 +0000

My husband and I work very well as a team. He eats “healthy” junk…but it is still junk! Chips, cookies, toaster pastries but all from the health food section. He feels he is doing well and I don’t want to discourage him as he has lost a little over 40 pounds. I on the other hand eat whole foods, clean foods almost exclusively. What I have done is asked him to put all of his snack foods on a high shelf (he is taller). He was kind enough to go a step further and take them all out of their boxes and place them inside of our punch bowl. I don;’ badger him to eat broccoli and he hides the junk. It works well.