In regards to eating meat

[Meerie]

Considering that the stomach can be tricked by your taste buds, and your taste buds rely on what your brain "thinks" it is, then yes there is a definite disconnect.

You can be tricked of course. I think this definitely applies to everyone who reads so much about what foods are good and what bad. If you chose to believe what you read, then I agree with you, as soon as you "think" something is bad for you you really should not eat it because then it will be bad for you anyway. It is your belief that matters a great deal.
Some years ago they demonized coffee here, now you read that it can actually be good for liver /gall issues. Maybe the coffee industry paid for a study showing the supposed benefits of the beverage? you never know who is behind these studies.
I just believe that not all foods are good for everyone. Some people cannot digest meat, others have troubles with the fructose in fruit, others are sensitive to certain grains. The body will show you what is good for you, by its reactions.

Most of my extended family members have serious gastric issues now. The slightest thing screws up their stomach.

This seems to be a family issue you have here and congrats on you for overcoming your gastric troubles, by eliminating meat.

All you need to do is look at the fast food industry. They spend large amounts of money on laboratories to come up with synthetic tastes to trick the brain into thinking unassimilable junk is food.

I have the impression this is even worse in the US than here. ALthough there are so many convenience products offered in the supermarkets here too. I mostly cook using fresh ingredients. I never buy ready-made pizza or "TV dinners" (in fact no one of my family does)

I just read about the 122 year old french woman Jeanne Calment. THey say she smoked until the end, liked port wine and ate around 1kg of chocolate a week. This would be like 10 bars of chocolate LOL