The Importance of Good Food and Nutrition
Nutritious whole food is key to our healing. We are all individuals and have different nutritional needs. And these needs change from time to time during our lives.
I realize a lot of food today doesn’t even resemble food. Yes, I ate junk food growing up, but it was not genetically modified. If I ate something sweet, it was made from white sugar, honey, or real maple syrup. Our bodies have eaten these sugars for many, many years and know how to handle them in moderation. Our bodies don’t know what to do with high-fructose corn syrup, HFCS. It’s too new, and it isn’t a “natural” sweetener. It’s in so many foods you can ingest large amounts on any given day. Many are now saying HFCS is a contributing cause of the obesity epidemic.
I know that for some people food is what comes from the box, the can, or the drive-through. I would urge these people to read the labels on these foods. Many of the ingredients in these items are chemicals. The shorter the list of ingredients, the better the food. And it is said that the best food does not have a label. When was the last time you saw an ingredient label on a fresh apple or tomato?
It is known that chemists combine different chemicals to create different tastes that are pleasing to our palates. I can do the same thing with real food and spices — and you can too. Cooking is not hard. With a few basic spices, you too can make some very tasty meals. My basic spices are a good salt, pepper, garlic, and cinnamon. I can do a lot with just those four.
When I first started eating organic food, it was available at Whole Foods and some farmer’s markets. I don’t ever remember seeing organic foods in a mainstream grocery store or restaurant. As more people are demanding organic foods they are becoming easier to find. Many mainstream grocery stores now carry organic food. Please note that some farmers at the market may not be certified organic. The food may be grown organically, but certification is expensive and some of the smaller growers can’t afford the process. Ask them how they grow their produce or feed the hens. Ask what they feed their cattle. I will buy from these farmers as long as I am comfortable that I am getting a clean product. We do have the power to change the marketplace if we exercise it. You vote for your food choices with every dollar you spend on food.
When dining out, which I do less and less all the time, I do ask questions. If salmon is on the menu, I will ask if it is wild caught or farm raised. I love when they proudly tell me it’s farm raised. I’m not as happy about it as they are and tell them since it’s farm raised, I will pass on it.
There are many ways of eating, many “diets” to choose from. People are vegan, vegetarian, meat eaters, rawists, and many combinations in between. I started out as a meat eater. Veggies and fruits were great too. I chose to eat vegetarian when I got sick due to the antibiotics in the meat. I now eat “clean” meat again.
I know my great-grandparents would not eat some of the chemically concocted food that is available to us today. They would not even consider it food. There was nothing fast about the food they prepared, served, or ate. It took hours to prepare even a simple meal. Tomato sauce took hours to cook. And if a big family meal was planned, the cooking happened over a couple of days, and the meal would last for hours. Some of the best food I have eaten was consumed under the awning, sitting at a long picnic table on my great-grandparents’ side porch.
A lot of food prep took place at the kitchen table. I recall my grandmother and her sisters helping their mom prepare some of our family favorites at that table. I would sit and help and learn family history. There were three generations at that table sometimes, all handling the food. I learned how to prepare some of my favorite dishes at that table with those women. This is another great tradition that is lost when we rush to warm up something in the microwave. There is no time to sit, visit, and share when dinner only takes minutes to “cook.”
It’s time we all take responsibility for getting our food back. I know we can’t all grow gardens. But if we have the space and are able, we should. And we can share our bounty with others. We can trade our extras for their extras. We can buy organic and non-conventional food. We can shop at local farmer’s markets and support locally grown produce. The more we know our farmers and tell them what we want, the better our food will be. We need labeling on foods. Clearly label the GMOs, the bovine growth hormones, and all adulterated foods so that the consumer can make an educated choice. And be honest in the labeling. For example, wouldn’t it be nice if the only word for sugar was sugar or honey? If you Google the word “sugar,” you can pull up a list with fifty different words used for sugar. Many people reading labels don’t know all the different ways to say sugar, so they don’t always realize they are getting so much. It’s time we all pay attention
to our food and the health benefits — or negatives — that are associated with our choices.
I know that changing how we eat and the type of food we eat isn’t always an easy change. For many people they also have to change how they prepare food. When I work with clients, I urge them to go slowly, at a pace that works for them and their families. There can be a cost associated with throwing out all the processed food in the home and replacing it will cleaner, more natural food. This cost can be high for some people, and this might be the reason they continue to eat poorly and continue to have poor health. Use what you have and as you buy new, buy differently. Make the transition as slowly as it suits you; just make it. Pay a few cents more for the organic apple over the conventional apple. You and your family are worth it.
In a perfect world, we would get all our nutrition from healthy, clean food. Sadly, we don’t live in that world. I do believe it is acceptable to use quality supplements to bridge this gap. As our nutritional status and our health improve, we should be able to wean off the added supplements and take them on an as-needed only basis.
It is our job to do our homework and figure out the best diets for ourselves and our families. The more we can eat this way, the healthier we will be. We also owe it to ourselves and our future.
Excerpt from My Journey Back to Health, Living with Multiple Chemical Sensitivities ~ Annette J Falconett and Samantha J Nelson, available on Amazon. http://amzn.to/2kXLwnN
Annette can be reached through her website: www.afalconett.com
