My Cheesiness

Hello, my name is Katie, and I'm a cheeziholic.

One of the first few things people find out about me, usually, is ironically my love for cheese and all things cheesy.

In fact, the first gift I ever received from Ben was a book titled, The Cheese Lover's Companion. My addiction is that obvious, apparently.

For instance, my favorite two meals -- a grilled cheese and pepperoni pizza (yes, it's like I am still in fourth grade...)

I have tried to overcome this *addiction* for many years; okay, not really, but I am aware that my love for cheese may be a little overkill. I have it every day in some form.

The weird thing about my cheesiness is that I don't necessarily like TONS of cheese on things. I like one slice on my sandwiches and maybe one and a half on my grilled cheese, but it's not that I like a stack of cheese on everything.

From this week forward I am embracing my cheesiness. I found an article from HopeHealth that talks about cheese and argues that people obsess over the negative side of cheese more than they need to. To summarize...

Cheese does contain fat, but only accounts for 9% of the total fat and 16% of the typical U.S. diet.

People worry about the salt levels, but cheese contributes only 8% of the sodium most people consume in the U.S.

Studies show that countries where people consume MORE cheese have lower rates of obesity. For example, people in Greece eat an average of 68 lb of cheese annually. The country's rate of obese individuals is 18% whereas in the US people eat an average of 33 lb of cheese, and the obesity rate is 34%.

In summary, valid or not this article makes me feel better, and if the Greeks can eat 68 lb of cheese annually....then why can't I? Right?! Okay, maybe I am justifying my addiction, but it feels so good to justify

my cheese!