Families in first-world countries like ours have a habit of forgetting how central food is to the lives we lead. Every move you make (on the wall or not), every thought you think, the emotions we feel, the drive and impulses that motivate us forward, how your organs function… it all depends heavily on the nutrients floating around in your body. These nutrients are used up as we need them, so we constantly need a new supply of them. How does a species like ours get nutrients into our bodies? We ingest them. Most of us call this nutrient-ingesting process eating (or drinking).
Food is all too often associate exclusively with body weight. Don’t get me wrong – of course there’s a correlation between food and weight. But there’s so much more that food does to you and for you; there are far more correlations that I highly recommend you open your mind up to. The foods you eat can do many different things to your body, it’s up to you to decide how you want to use these nutrients… or lack thereof.
Concerns about physical health, heart disease and cancer have increased awareness of the nutrients in our food – especially cholesterol, saturated fat, antioxidant vitamins – and the benefits of eating more of some foods and less of other foods. Yet, in reality, the way our country eats has changed little in recent years. Many of us still use coffee to boost energy levels in the morning, and fast food burgers, fries, pizza, shakes and soft drinks to support busy, stress-filled lives. We have too little time for ourselves or our loved ones, let alone time to cook – or stop and think. Enlightening realizations often happen far too late – not until after these harmful nutrients have already made us sick.
Fresh, whole, live, organic foods in general have far more favorable effects on our health than processed foods containing the chemicals of artificial colors and flavors, preservatives, pesticides, hormones, and antibiotics. Think of the vital energy you get when you eat something that lived and lived well versus something that came from a factory’s production line or a fast food restaurant’s freezer.
