Diet Thanksgiving Dinner

Did you know, on Thanksgiving Day we consume an average of 3,000 calories? Some of even consume a whopping 5,000 calories. This is not surprising considering all there is to eat: turkey, gravy, stuffing, butter, mashed potatoes, yams, pumpkin pie, pecan pie, whipped cream, cranberry sauce, rolls, jam and everything else.

Of course, the thing that packs the most calories per bite is the dessert. Pecan pie is at the top of the list with 503 calories a slice, then apple pie with 411 calories and my favorite, pumpkin pie, comes in at 316 calories a slice.

Do you know that some crazy people in America actually want to find a way to cut calories on this most holy of dinners? Why? Why would someone even dream of doing such a thing? Isn’t that one of the best parts of Thanksgiving? The fact that you can eat whatever you want and eat as much as you want, with no guilt or worry?

Really, how badly would you like to be invited to someone’s Thanksgiving dinner if they told you it was going to be a “diet” Thanksgiving dinner? I know I would go to dinner somewhere else if I had another choice. I don’t think the pilgrims and the Native Americans were worried about the calorie count on the first Thanksgiving.

So, please people, for the love of America, don’t put your Thanksgiving dinner on a diet.

Joy Larson is a mother of four boys, graduate of The University of Montana, animal lover and writer.