Windy, colder weather in ABQ this weekend. So I decided to stay in and focus on other things. One of my growing passions is clean, healthy food. When you eat clean (organic, non-processed), healthy, natural food... you automatically lose weight, your health improves, your skin smoothes out, you age slower, and you feel so much better.
Americans have become used to eating cheap, processed, quick foods. Processed foods have become so endemic that we don't realize how much of them we eat - and we have given up control over ingredients and what we absorb into our bodies to the giant companies responsible for making them. Anyone can figure this out - if you just care to look. Start looking at the ingredients of some of the processed foods in your cabinets. And by processed foods, I mean not only crackers, bread, baked goods, sodas, cereals and desserts, but also canned pasta sauce, soups, frozen foods. Start looking at all the chemicals and things you can't pronounce on the labels.
Did you know that the processed food industry funds and submits their own studies on new foods and additives to the FDA? There is no independent study done. No one is saying, "Is this really good for people? What are the long term benefits or harm? What does it affect in the body - does it cause weight gain?" Nope. They don't care. They add addictive chemicals to processed foods so we crave them more, so we purchase more. So they make more money. One of the things I learned when we owned a coffee shop, was that the method for creating flavored coffees is to spray them with propylene glycol - which causes the flavor to adhere to the beans. I recently found out that it is also in the fake blueberries in processed blueberry muffins. Oh yeah, and Propylene glycol is also used to de-ice planes; keep pipes from freezing, etc. Not something I want to put in my body.
Just by eliminating processed foods, and adding organic, natural fruits & vegetables; choosing meats from local, organic sources from farmers who do not use antibiotics or hormones (that's a whole 'nother subject) - you can change your health and lose weight. No diets needed. And you eliminate your risk of metabolic diseases (diabetes, obesity, kidney disease) and also cancer!!
So most people know this in the back of their minds. But why do so little of us do anything about it? I started by getting interested in eating local, sustainable food. I found groups dedicated to slow food - i.e. cooking at home. And the more I followed that path, the more I have learned. And the more I learn, the more I look around. I have a friend who has MCS (multiple chemical sensitivity) who has opened my eyes to the amounts of chemicals we are exposed to in household cleaners, makeup, VOCs from new furniture, paint, flooring; perfumes, air fresheners, etc. Why have we allowed this? We don't need all these chemicals.
I recently acquired the documentary, Hungry for Change. I highly recommend it! Here's a just a few tidbits: Americans consume 150 lbs of sugar a year. Aspartame (in diet sodas, etc) causes visual disturbances (pilots won't drink diet sodas prior to flying because of this), causes loss of bone mineral density and cognitive problems. Laughter and deep sleep will reduce stress. Keep funny movies around to laugh at. Diets don't work. They cause the body to think it's in starvation - so you end up gaining more later as the body prepares for the next famine. Instead of saying I can't have that - say I can have it, but I don't want to eat it. Just keep adding in the good stuff until it crowds out the bad stuff!
Other documentaries I can recommend are : Food Inc.; Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead; Forks over Knives. And look into the Gerson Therapy - they have been curing patients of cancer for years!!! Without chemo and radiation. According to the American Cancer Society, 90% of all cancer is preventable by diet alone. Read that again. 90% of all cancer is preventable by diet alone. All we have to do is make the choice to NOT put chemically processed foods, etc in our bodies. To make our health and our bodies a priority. To love ourselves enough to make that choice. It does take some effort in the beginning to learn about new foods, to plan ahead so that you don't grab junk food in a pinch, to budget... yes it costs a little more to eat healthy. However, you save money by not being sick. You save money on all the drugs you would be buying to mask the symptoms of unhealthy eating.
You can start just by noticing the ingredients in everything you eat. By adding more and more fresh fruits and vegetables. Try juicing or making smoothies with them if you have a problem with texture. Try watching some of the documentaries I mentioned. A friend of mine in Atlanta was discussing diets and what to eat with me just last year. I mentioned that the information is out there - you just have to look for it, on how to eat right. His response was that there is so much conflicting information, how could you sort through it all or know who is right. And he has a valid point. So don't stress over having a program. Just start adding the good things until you crowd out the bad!
Good eating!
Julie
Americans have become used to eating cheap, processed, quick foods. Processed foods have become so endemic that we don't realize how much of them we eat - and we have given up control over ingredients and what we absorb into our bodies to the giant companies responsible for making them. Anyone can figure this out - if you just care to look. Start looking at the ingredients of some of the processed foods in your cabinets. And by processed foods, I mean not only crackers, bread, baked goods, sodas, cereals and desserts, but also canned pasta sauce, soups, frozen foods. Start looking at all the chemicals and things you can't pronounce on the labels.
Did you know that the processed food industry funds and submits their own studies on new foods and additives to the FDA? There is no independent study done. No one is saying, "Is this really good for people? What are the long term benefits or harm? What does it affect in the body - does it cause weight gain?" Nope. They don't care. They add addictive chemicals to processed foods so we crave them more, so we purchase more. So they make more money. One of the things I learned when we owned a coffee shop, was that the method for creating flavored coffees is to spray them with propylene glycol - which causes the flavor to adhere to the beans. I recently found out that it is also in the fake blueberries in processed blueberry muffins. Oh yeah, and Propylene glycol is also used to de-ice planes; keep pipes from freezing, etc. Not something I want to put in my body.
Just by eliminating processed foods, and adding organic, natural fruits & vegetables; choosing meats from local, organic sources from farmers who do not use antibiotics or hormones (that's a whole 'nother subject) - you can change your health and lose weight. No diets needed. And you eliminate your risk of metabolic diseases (diabetes, obesity, kidney disease) and also cancer!!
So most people know this in the back of their minds. But why do so little of us do anything about it? I started by getting interested in eating local, sustainable food. I found groups dedicated to slow food - i.e. cooking at home. And the more I followed that path, the more I have learned. And the more I learn, the more I look around. I have a friend who has MCS (multiple chemical sensitivity) who has opened my eyes to the amounts of chemicals we are exposed to in household cleaners, makeup, VOCs from new furniture, paint, flooring; perfumes, air fresheners, etc. Why have we allowed this? We don't need all these chemicals.
I recently acquired the documentary, Hungry for Change. I highly recommend it! Here's a just a few tidbits: Americans consume 150 lbs of sugar a year. Aspartame (in diet sodas, etc) causes visual disturbances (pilots won't drink diet sodas prior to flying because of this), causes loss of bone mineral density and cognitive problems. Laughter and deep sleep will reduce stress. Keep funny movies around to laugh at. Diets don't work. They cause the body to think it's in starvation - so you end up gaining more later as the body prepares for the next famine. Instead of saying I can't have that - say I can have it, but I don't want to eat it. Just keep adding in the good stuff until it crowds out the bad stuff!
Other documentaries I can recommend are : Food Inc.; Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead; Forks over Knives. And look into the Gerson Therapy - they have been curing patients of cancer for years!!! Without chemo and radiation. According to the American Cancer Society, 90% of all cancer is preventable by diet alone. Read that again. 90% of all cancer is preventable by diet alone. All we have to do is make the choice to NOT put chemically processed foods, etc in our bodies. To make our health and our bodies a priority. To love ourselves enough to make that choice. It does take some effort in the beginning to learn about new foods, to plan ahead so that you don't grab junk food in a pinch, to budget... yes it costs a little more to eat healthy. However, you save money by not being sick. You save money on all the drugs you would be buying to mask the symptoms of unhealthy eating.
You can start just by noticing the ingredients in everything you eat. By adding more and more fresh fruits and vegetables. Try juicing or making smoothies with them if you have a problem with texture. Try watching some of the documentaries I mentioned. A friend of mine in Atlanta was discussing diets and what to eat with me just last year. I mentioned that the information is out there - you just have to look for it, on how to eat right. His response was that there is so much conflicting information, how could you sort through it all or know who is right. And he has a valid point. So don't stress over having a program. Just start adding the good things until you crowd out the bad!
Good eating!
Julie
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