People who drive faster are maniacs. People who drive slower are slowpokes. And I, of course, drive just right.

That thought group is why I hesitate to (over)praise the deep and whole wisdom of Andy Bellatti's guest post for Fooducate — the reason I like it so much is that he says things I say.

This is another entry in my “assumptions” series, in which my intention is to discuss one of my underlying assumptions definitively, so the next time I feel the need to veer away from a post’s point at hand to provide full background, I can just link to the full thought and let others veer, if they choose to.

Assumption: What we eat actually matters.

I was fascinated by the simple question put out recently by foodnavigator-usa.com — “Who is best qualified to provide nutrition counseling? RDs? MDs? a CNS? You or me?” — because I’d have to say: As a class, at least, none of the above.

What a shocking realization: We got nuthin'!

Note: This is an edited version of a Google Hangouts chat Andy and I had last week.

I'll be presenting an edited-text version of this on the blog next week, but for video fans, here's our entire conversation on the Bellatti-cofounded Dietitians for Professional Integrity, the Bellatti-bedeviled Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, and his quest for truth.

Mom instructed me that if you can’t say anything nice, to not say anything at all. But at least one corollary just doesn’t hold up, as exemplified by an ad for cookies that Dr. Yoni Freedhoff highlighted on his blog.

When I saw the tweet a few mornings ago that Taco Bell would offer healthier fare, I RT’ed in a knee-jerk way, celebrating it and even claiming it as progress against the flood of food-like substances.

In a window-dressing sort of way, it was progress. Taco Bell puts sugar in its meat and is the contemptible promoter of “fourth meal,” so even if they're only flapping their gums about healthy food, it acknowledges that not everyone wants to eat total crap.

I have acknowledged my possibly self-defeating urge to bring attention to bullshit that deserves no attention (see: every post I’ve ever done about the liarly named Center for Consumer Freedom (no link, intentionally)). But here I go again.

"Organic" products are more healthful than non-organic products.

But they are not necessarily nutritious.

*Love* this, from Fooducate:

McDonald’s makes it VERY HARD for you to understand [its new chicken wrap's] nutritional information. (Word of the Day: Obfuscate – (v) Render obscure, unclear, or unintelligible). McDonald’s is obfuscating its menu’s nutrition information in several ways. To see a product’s nutrition facts panel, one must download a PDF. To see the ingredients list, one must download another PDF.