Preparing food has been part of our DNA for many thousands of years, a creative activity that brings us in contact with nature, the seasons, and above all with ourselves. Only since the last decades have we been choosing fabric and comfort foods above self-prepared meals.

We’ve been trusting the food companies who are trying hard to make us buy their products. Products that are causing illness, including the ones that are labelled as healthy. The contradictory messages can be very confusing at times. The good news is, this knowledge give us a perfect opportunity to do our research and take matters into our own hands by finding out what works for us.

DIGESTIVE HEALTH

Everything we put in our mouth needs to be digested by the body, a process that transforms food either into health or illness. Digestive health is when our food is digesting well, without experiencing a lack of energy after eating a meal and without digestive uneasiness like bloating or gas.

Digestive problems may occur due to:

• Eating foods that are not tolerated by your body.
• Intolerance resulted by eating certain food combinations.
• Stressful eating habits; not being aware of what you are consuming while driving, working or in front of the TV.
• Not chewing well or not paying attention to the taste and benefits of what you are eating.
• Consumption of too much alcohol and coffee.
• As a result of the above, our stomach does not produce enough acid to process the food well.
• Antibiotics, present in meat, dairy and eggs.
• Lack of fibre in our food.
• Eating too often, instead of allowing the body to digest the food entirely.
• The intake of too much sugar and sweets. We should also eliminate the use of natural sweetness such as honey, agave, maple syrup and stevia.

VEGETARIAN and VEGAN

Proven to be the ultimate health food choices are vegetarian, vegan, Mediterranean style and plant-based diets. Studies have confirmed that people live longer, have better moods, with less depression, anxiety and stress. A plant-based diet changes our microbiomes within three months, activating the genes that prevent and protects us against illness and chronicle disease.

Daily intake of these foods result in a healthy and balanced diet:

• Salad with raw and fresh vegetables.
• Soup, freshly made.
• Beans or lentils.
• Berries and other fruits.
• Nuts.
• Seeds, such as chia, flax, sesame, cumin, poppy, hemp, pomegranate, sunflowers, pumpkin and pine nuts.
• Mushrooms, especially a mixed extract. Not to be eaten raw.
• Onions, all different kinds, including leaks and garlic.

EATING THE RAINBOW

Every 35 days our skin replaces itself, the liver takes about a month. The body produces these news cells from the food we eat. What you eat literally becomes you. Eating the colours of the rainbow, from fresh and nutritious food, keeps our body vitalized and balanced; combining the different colours and types amplify it.

White: Strengthens the immune system.

Purple: Protects the nervous system.

Blue: Destroys free radicals.

Orange: Prevents inflammation.

Yellow: Vitamin C; detoxifying; fortifies the skin’s elasticity.

Red: Antioxidants; improves heart and blood health.

Green: Eliminates carcinogens; builds healthy cells; detoxing.

DETOXING and HGH

Our body’s detoxing process is about cleaning the liver to support its function. This detoxing process happens during the night while we sleep; hence, 8 hours of sleep is recommended. Therefore, when eating late or within 3 hours before going to bed, the body will not be able to perform its detoxing process well, as it is busy digesting food.

This detoxing process is significant for our well-being, as it increases the Human Growth Hormone (HGH). A peptide hormone, responsible for the stimulation of cell growth, cell reproduction and cell regeneration. It boosts protein production and helps fat utilisation; it controls the insulin level in the body and keeps the blood sugar level stable. For children and adolescents, it is also responsible for the growth of bone and cartilage.

DAIRY FOOD

Although milk is the perfect food for baby calves to grow fast and fat, it is not beneficial to the human body. Increased consumption of dairy products has resulted in an increasing risk of bone ailments, auto-immune disease, obesity and diabetes. The way our dairy is processed and the way animals are raised, is a reason why many people are allergic to milk. There is also a strong indication that a high consumption of dairy foods relates to prostate, ovarian and breast cancer.

Calcium, present in dairy foods, does not support our bones as they make us believe because the body does not absorb it very well. In addition, dairy acidifies the body and increases the risk of bone fractures. An in-depth research showed that the countries with the highest consumption of dairy products have the highest rate of osteoporosis. Likewise, children with a high intake of dairy do not indicate to have more calcium or stronger bones.

However, we do need calcium, especially children, women and elderly people. We can get the needed calcium from eating fresh green vegetables, nuts and beans. In order to absorb calcium our body needs sufficient vitamin D. We keep our bones strong and healthy through exercise and by de-acidifying our body with healthy eating habits and by leaving out high acid products like sugar, meat, sodas and other manufactured food.

GRAIN

Flower from non-organic wheat should be avoided, basically just as sugar in general, as it has proven to weaken our entire energy system. Hence, increasingly numbers of people suffer from gluten intolerance, which is mainly caused by GMO manufactured wheats. Instead eat 100% organic and gluten free grains, like buckwheat, wild rice, rye, oat, quinoa, or sourdough.

MEAT

Like dairy, the human body is not designed to digest large amounts of meat. Meat should be eaten as an occasional treat, just as our ancestors did. The increased consumption of meat in Asian countries is resulting into an increased rate of Western health issues like cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. Animal protein promotes cell growth of cancer and other chronic diseases. It fluids the body with high amounts of glucose which results in an increased need for insulin to process it. The body requires more hours to digest it; hence, the food starts to putrefy in the body.

Our bodies are harmed by eating meat that comes from farms that treat animals very poorly. They contain large amounts of antibiotics to keep them alive (not healthy). Low-cost manufactured meats have a big price tag attached to them, paid for by the health and well-being of ourselves and that of the billions of animals, every year. Equally important is the harm we put on our planet by destroying many acres of forests to grow the food to feed these animals, including the need for loads of water for the land. Last but not least more animals mean more production of CO2, mainly by their ordure, but also by the fuels needed to transport the food to the animals, the animals to the slaughterhouses, followed by the meat transportation to the stores. Fewer forests mean less CO2 is being transformed into oxygen, the primary cause of climate change.

TOXINS

If you don’t recognize an ingredient, it is very likely that your body won’t either. Toxins like mercury can’t be processed nor drained by our organic structure and therefore accumulates in the body. Mercury is highly present in most fish (related to the quality of the water) and meat (related to vaccines).

Our regular food has become very toxic due to its process with added chemicals. Glyphosate is one of the most commonly used herbicides in the world for GMO (Genetically Modified Organism) foods and is damaging to our overall health. Glyphosate destroys not only the weeds and crops but also our gut bacteria. Not labeling the toxins in our food properly is a major concern because the human body exists tenfold more out of bacteria than cells, we need bacteria to survive.

The consumption of toxic food and sugar takes away our taste of natural sweets like berries and other sweet fruits. Changing our diets with less sugar increases our sense of taste for natural foods. We can reclaim our taste buds by changing our food intake.

MEDICINES

The use of conventional drugs does not support our overall health and well-being. For example, medicine taken for high blood pressure doubles the risk for breast cancer. Taking different kinds of drugs or medications for ten years or longer increases our health risk once again. The symptoms are muscle pain, which decreases the need to exercise, which increases obesity, diabetes, and overall weakness with non-detectable symptoms of the muscles; our heart is the largest muscle we have!

Only since 2005 medical doctors research the effects of medicines, and the food we eat, on our health. Please note, this research is not financed by Pharmaceutical drug companies, who obviously have different interests. 

VEGETABLE OILS

Vegetable oils are not as good for us as the food industry likes us to believe. Most vegetable oils are a combination of different sorts of oils that are chemically adapted and abstracted from fibers; this also applies to some of the virgin kinds. They can be harmful when consumed in large amounts. Use Extra Virgin Olive Oil or Coconut Oil from an Organic origin to be sure of good quality! For more information www.truthinoliveoil.com

SOY

Soybean oil and other soy products should be avoided entirely, as they are filled with GMO chemicals that cause cancer and other ‘undefinable’ illnesses. It’s hard to find pure soy, which should be consumed in modest portions only. Remarkable enough all soy foods are considered healthy and the food industry ignores the fact that we are becoming sick from it. No one knows yet what the consequences will be for the future. Food is information and regulates our hormones, genes, immune system, and many cellular messages.

SODA and SUGAR

Sugar and Soda are the two most protected foods by the US government and are number one related to causing disease. Some people gain weight while others grow extra organ fat, which is more harmful because it is not visible on the outside.

Soda is very detrimental to our health but has a strong attraction to people worldwide with an addictive effect. It is available at most remote places in the world and has become cheaper than water. Most people drink it because it is marketed as something that creates happiness and friends. The’ light’ versions are even more alarming, containing chemical supplements to improve its taste. Most large companies, restaurants, and movie theatres oppose taking away soda because they are cheap in the process and therefore profitable.

SUPPLEMENTS

Taking supplements can be helpful if we suffer from a deficit. However, we need to be careful with the use of vitamin supplements, as they do not fix the cause of our health issues. Our body may experience difficulties with the transfer of synthetic vitamins and may, therefore, work diverse. Eating the real thing is the best we can do, except vitamin D, which is hard to withdraw from food. In some cases, vegans need extra vitamin B12, which can also be obtained from eating kelp.

Children in general, are very sensitive to vitamins, as they are to medicine. It is advisable to test the need per individual. Supplements should be taken as a cure only and never standard! Instead of focussing on one issue, we need to concentrate on the entire functioning of the body, which needs multiple ‘living’ nutrients to heal.

CONCLUSION

The science of healthy eating is the art of letting nutrition work for you. Connecting your mind with your energy body and ‘feel’ what is right for you. We always have a choice, and the freedom, to engage with food that leads to more energy, a strong immune system, better sleep, and feeling good on all levels. Your body is a finely tuned vehicle. Give it the right fuel and it will take you to beautiful places.

Sources and more detailed information:
The Food Revolution Network

Michael Klaper, M.D. – Healing Foods: Our Best Hope For a Liveable World
Joel Fuhrman, M.D. – How to Eat to Live
Mark Hyman, M.D. – Foods that Harm and Foods that Heal

Ritamarie Loscalzo, D.C. – Healthy Digestion for a Healthy Life, Author of Unstoppable Health – 7 Breakthrough Habits to Feel Younger, Grow Stronger, and Enjoy more Energy.