As a major portion of our food became heavily processed, health concerns have been spreading during the last few decades, with tons of books telling us how to eat right. However, with the Internet, there is often way too much advice and conflicting information on how to eat and it can become overwhelming. Have you ever hit that wall and just wanted to revert to whatever you ate before? Eating healthy is not supposed to be a chore, and most of us have no time to dwell on it too much, either. Follow these simple steps instead, and clean eating will become much easier.
Step 1 - Don't Buy Junk
If you plant your own garden or raise your own animals for food, now that's the best way to eat healthy, but for most people in urban settings, it all begins with shopping. The trick is not to buy the wrong kinds of food. With only great foods in your kitchen, you have done 90% of the job. Ask yourself "is this an excellent food?" before putting any food or drink into your cart. If it has been stripped of nutrients and then "enriched", skip it. Soon you will buy only whole foods without thinking.
Step 2 - Eat Fresh
Always make sure that the produce you buy is as fresh as possible. The more food sits on the shelf, the more of its vitamin content is lost. This is especially true for fruits and vegetables. Do not shun frozen fruits and vegetables - they undergo quick freezing so the nutrients are almost completely preserved. Nuts, seeds and cold pressed oils also must be fresh as they easily go rancid, and the oils should always be in a dark bottle to minimize oxydation.
Step 3 - Buy Real Food
There are three key words here: organic, raw and unprocessed. Food should be as close to its natural state as possible. Everything else serves only the industry and the profit. This is why we have GM crops and animals fed with antibiotics and hormones. Food is being pasteurised in order to make its shelf life much longer than it should be. It is being processed so the industry can make use of cheap ingredients like sugar and get rid of the waste byproducts by hiding it in other products. As a rule of thumb: if something has an ingredient list, it is usually not an amazingly nutritious food.
Step 4 - Grandma Knows Best
There are good reasons for doing things the old way, usually science is just too late with explanations. The old ways work: develop some love for old school cooking. Broths are mineral rich and heal your gut. Raw fermented vegetables are great natural probiotics. Soak your grains and beans properly to make them more digestible. Eat butter and lard instead of toxic margarine. Eat the foods that are currently in season, our bodies have adapted to that through generations. It is because we are forsaking these things that our health is plummeting.
Step 5 - Variety
Monotonous or extreme diets sometimes do harm in the long run. You can hardly go wrong with varied nutrition if you are uncertain what is best for you, because it has stood the test of time. When you shop, vary your choices within the same food groups. Have a colorful plate: fill at least half of your plate with vegetables. Various fruits, nuts and seeds make for wonderful, nutritious snacks in between meals.
Step 6 - Listen to Your Body and Experiment
As you wean yourself off industrial food, you will become more in tune with your body and start noticing which foods make you feel good or ill. It is always a good idea to try elimination diet if you suspect that you are sensitive or allergic to a certain food.
For people with chronic diseases, this is where further adjustments are needed. The good news is that you have likely eliminated a great deal of the bad guys by simply choosing whole foods.
Step 7 - Defeat Hurry by Thinking Ahead
Lack of time and hurry are the number one reason why people resort to processed foods. Many foods can be prepared in bulk ahead of time and last long enough in the refrigerator, like salads or pâtés. Your freezer should always be loaded with fish fillets, thin-sliced meat and frozen vegetables. Experiment with fast cooking techniques (like stir-frying) and foods that cook fast (like eggs, per example). Some commercially available nutritious foods do not require any preparation: nuts and nut butters, dairy, sprouted bread - just to name a few.
Eating healthy is not that hard, but it does take some will and planning. The good news is that you can really lay the foundation down by shopping right. If you rely on simple principles rather than on complicated, strict diet prescriptions and calorie counting, eating healthy will soon become a routine.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lydia_Renaldi
0 comments:
Post a Comment