'You are what you eat!' This is a common saying which I'd like you to keep in mind whilst you read this article.
In today's age, we benefit from a comfortable life and lots of choices to choose from to make our life easier - be it in the supermarket, restaurant or even takeaways.
We have so many options to choose from and within minutes we can have a full 3-course menu on our table. Also, cooking has become much easier as everything is mixed and ready-prepared - mostly we just need to mix a few things and warm it up.
Life couldn't be easier but is it really that great for our health?
Although there are these so-called 'healthy' options, the best that we can do for our health is to prepare our food in the most natural way in which we keep the nutrients and vitamins alive.
A balanced diet focuses on what the body needs to function at its utmost level, but so often we let our senses like taste and smell dictate what is best. This can fool us and instead of feeling regenerated, we feel exhausted, tired and in need of a coffee after a meal.
Our food can be our medicine like Hippocrates said and if we have a balanced diet we can see benefits like healthy weight management, a good digestive system, a stronger heart, good kidney function, reduced risk of cancer, strong teeth and bones, a better mood, better sleep and even better management for diabetes.
A well-balanced diet can help to improve certain ills like mentioned above and boost our health but it is also great prevention.
Prevention is better than cure as we can avoid not only costly treatment but also a lot of mental anguish.
In a well-balanced diet discipline plays a big part, not only do we choose certain foods/ drinks and avoid others, but we focus on when to eat/drink.
We eat/drink to give our body nutrients, vitamins and energy to function well, for this reason, we need to follow certain rules like mealtimes.
Often we are told to have small but many meals throughout the day but in this way, our body is always busy digesting the food that comes in, rather than focusing on the other important jobs it needs to do.
It is better to have two to three good meals throughout the day, choosing wisely the mealtimes as well.
It is well known that in the evening hours it should be avoided to eat if possible or just have a light meal. We recommend not to eat later than 6 pm as this will give your body time to digest the food and prepare for the night in which the body will regenerate and create full physical and mental balance. This will have a great impact on your sleep and mood.
Many health professionals recommend intermittent fasting as it helps to balance the metabolism, burn fat and promote general health.
This underlines the fact that we should not eat after 6 pm. We do recommend to have a good breakfast, a moderate lunch and a light dinner.
Our lifestyle has a great impact on our health.
Here are some mind-blowing numbers to visualize.
The world health organisation (WHO) states that since 1975 the worldwide obesity has nearly tripled which means more than 1.9 billion adults, 18 years and older, are overweight. Of these over 650 million were obese and over 340 million children and adolescents aged 5-19 were overweight or obese in 2016.
These numbers are just crazy but they do show us how much we do need to live and promote a well-balanced diet.
Obesity alone hides many health problems like diabetes, heart disease, leaky gut and much more ...and these can simply be managed through a well-balanced diet.
If you like to have help in creating a diet that works for you please contact us here.
We like to share some simple tips on how to have a more balanced diet:
Think fresh = fresh fruit and vegetables will help your digestion and provide you with plenty nutrients and vitamins. Ready prepared products like meals and juice etc. are not only unfresh but also include sugars, cheap salts and seasoning which are not promoting healthy conditions in the body.
Think plant = we recommend a vegetarian or vegan diet as a well-balanced diet will provide you with all nutrients and vitamins needed. For example, calcium can be found in many vegetables, nuts, seeds and soja products, the same for protein as it can be found in legumes, vegetable fruits, nuts, seeds and soja.
Think non-saturated = many fats e.g. butter, vegetable oil and even sunflower oil are mostly saturated fats which can clog up our intestines and blood vessels and this will lead to various diseases. Fats are needed and should not be avoided, healthy fats are found in avocados, nuts, seeds, olives.
Think preparation = the way we prepare food plays a big impact on our health. Fried food comes mostly with plenty of saturated fats and many nutrients and vitamins are burned. Microwaved food might be convenient but it burns the nutrients, vitamins and radioactivates your food, therefore we do recommend not to use a microwave in any circumstance. Boiled food is another option in which care must be given to the level of heat and the length of cooking as many nutrients and vitamins can be lost within the water during the process. Steaming is a great way to preserve nutrients and vitamins and the real flavour of the vegetable. But the best way to consume fruits and vegetables in many cases is in a raw and fresh state.
Think time = Our body works like clockwork and routine is always good and helps us to be well-balanced - the same goes for mealtimes. Also, certain foods should be consumed at certain times, for example, many fruits which are consumed in the late afternoon/ evening will raise the acidity levels in the body which then, in turn, can eventually lead to various ills.
Think healthy carbohydrates = often we think carbs are bad but in reality, we need to think what are healthy carbs. Here are some examples: brown rice, oats, quinoa, couscous, whole grains, vegetables like potatoes and sweet potatoes, and legumes are high in carbohydrates and these are all healthy!
Think local = one perk that comes with modern life is that we can eat any fruit or vegetable - no matter where it comes from. Many of those fruits are even superfoods like Avocado, mango and banana. The downside that comes with those foods is that often these are harvested unripe or even grown in mass production to cover the consumption need rather than the focus is on the quality of those fruits and vegetables. Getting food locally you can mostly see how the farmer treats his land, grows the fruits and vegetables and these are harvested at the right time. All of these factors are very important in our health and are being balanced in a wholistic way.
Think organic = with no doubt organic food is the best and often can be found at local farmers as well. Many toxic pesticides and herbicides are avoided and an organic diet is also very environmentally friendly which in turn will be beneficial for health.
Think cravings = we all have cravings and it is natural. Cravings are a way for the body to tell you what you need. Often we do interpret our cravings with foods that should be minimised or even avoided within a healthy diet - therefore we have created a craving > need > food list for you:
Chocolate >
Magnesium > Nuts, Seeds, veggies and fruits.
Sugary foods
> Chromium > Broccoli, grapes, peaches, celery
> Carbon > fresh fruits
> Phosphorus > nuts, veggies, grains, oatmeal, grains
> Sulphur > cranberries, horseradish, cabbage, cauliflower
> Tryptophan > raisins, sweet potato, pumpkin seeds and spinach
Pasta, bread and other carbohydrates
> Nitrogen > high protein foods, nuts, lentils, chia seeds and beans
Oily foods
> Calcium > green leafy veggies, tofu, tahini and pulses
Salty foods
> Chloride > Rye, tomatoes, olives, seaweeds
> Silicon > cashew nuts, seeds
These are some basics and we are organizing some seminars, in which we will dive in deeper. To register for a seminar, please click here.
Also feel free to contact us if you have questions or want some help regarding your diet and finding a good balance, wanting to prevent disease or manage certain challenges.
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