What We Are Not Told.......

So, I get people asking, how do I know if a food item is truly natural and unprocessed?
We find it hard to determine whether "natural" really means natural. Just because the bread is whole wheat doesn't make it good for you.  Just because it is "all natural" or "organic" doesn't mean it's good for you. As you begin your journey of eating for wellness you must re-train your way of thinking and how you shop and prepare food. We have been trained by society to just take our food for outward appearance
Because of the media, big corporations, goverment regulations (or lack there of), the loss of integrity in packaging and labeling, we can't always trust what it says on the package. Take the time to dig deep, read ingredients (not just the first 5, but all of them:) and remember they don't have to list anything that is less than %1, which seems small, but when it's in multiple items that you eat all the time..... that becomes a large amount)

I want to address the issue of our eating habits here in America and the tie to our heath issues. Throughout my reseach and journey in the fitness and whole foods realm, I have come to realize the lies we have been told, even in regards to our "natural food" and "diet programs". All of us are affected by some type of major health problem, in one way or another, we either suffer ourselves or know of someone who does. You name it.... cancer, heart disease, asthma, allergies, autism, birth defects, PCOS, diabeties, MS, ADD, infertility, obesity (which itself leads to most of these othere diseases, and more).... the list goes on and on. It seems that we have hundreds of organizations that are "doing research" to "cure" these diseases... to name a few....American Cancer Society, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, Autism Society of America, this list goes on and on as well. (I do not want to dis-credit any of the organizations, as far as I know they are all doing wonderful work and trying to help find a true cure for these diseases). My question is where have we got off the track, where have we lost our way? I want to know why we haven't come up with a cure for so many of these diseases. I admit, we have come up with some pretty good "bandaids" but we have been unsucessful in finding a true cure and stopping the spread of these horrible, life altering and eventually life ending diseases. (many of these "band-aids" or drugs, are causing our bodies to be further damaged because they only mask symptoms). In-fact, these diseases are becoming more and more wide-spread and are occuring in people at younger ages..... how is that possible? We spend Billions of dollars a year on finding cures. What are we missing?
What about our "diets"..... weight watchers, Jenny Craig, South Beach Diet, Atkins Diet, The Zone, vegiarian, Mediterranean Diet, Nutrisystem, and a Millon other diets out there to choose from. (Again, don't get me wrong, many people do find results, but can they keep the results for years to come and have they really created a healthy body or are they just loosing weight so they look good on the outside.) You can't enter a book store without being bombarded by a hundred different "diet" books on the front shelves..... Many of them best sellers.... So, we have to ask again.... what are we missing?
We spend Billions of dollars on health care and research.... come up with thousands of diet plans and self help books, which are best sellers and are all over the media, so obviously people are using the "help" and/or "ideas", but we continue to become more and more sick and obese as a nation. ????
So we have figured out that fast food makes us fat, why? why does it make us fat? Is is just the cholesterol and fat, if so, everyone of us who is on a "low fat diet" should be super healthy.....
What is it that is holding us back from Optimum Health. I truly believe that we were created to be healthy and whole individuals, that are bodies can heal and take care of themselves, most of the time, if given the right environment. We have to create that environment inside... we are slowing killing ourselves from the inside out.....
I have a lot of people tell me that it is just too expensive.... too time consuming.... and yes, it "can" be more expensive and it is definitely more time consuming to eat and live for optimum health, but what would you choose..... convenience or health for you and your loved ones? If you knew that the genetically modified foods, like corn & soybeans and chemicals like pesticides & fertilizer ( which are in and on most everything you eat) cause cancer, which is now the #1 disease in children under 15. Would you take the time to find a truly whole and natural food? Well, it's true.... these chemicals and pesticides are being linked to cancer, obesity, allergies, PCOS, you name it.... they are all linked. Take soybeans for example, the food industry has glorified them and we are told to eat them in anyway possible. Did you know that because they have to be so highly processed they act as estrogen imitators in the body, throwing off the natural hormone leves of estrogen in women and causing men to have more feminine attrubutes and lower their testosterone levels. Soybean have been eaten for hundreds of years, but not in the amount we eat them, they were not grown from genetically modified seeds, and were not highly processed. They were fermented, which changes the structure and allows the body the ability to digest them properly.
Why did our ancestors live longer than we do, and yet we have so much more technology now?
I think we are missing the boat folks.... Our bodies were never created to deal with the chemicals that we unknowingly throw at them everyday. They can't detox fast enough and on top of that we then throw in a low carb this, low fat that, sugar coated this, and sugar substitute that(Straight Chemicals!!!) a little fake butter here (HORRIBLE!), etc..... We have succefully deprived our bodies of any good vitamins and minerals (And no, the ones they add back in do NOT count. Your body can't absorb them like it can those in their natural state). So, now that we have thrown a load of chemicals at our bodies, everything from splenda and veggies that have pesticides, to outside environmental chemicals (which is an entire blog post in itself), what is our body to do. We have no way of detoxing fast enough.  I am getting off into a new subject that is in every way linked to our food, but definitely needs its own blog post. I will write about detoxification in the near future.

For this post, I want to stick with food. I want to raise peoples awareness of what they are really eating. PLEASE don't assume the food is good for you because they say it is.... This is why we are fat and sick. We have a responsibility to take care of our bodies and I believe we are failing in many ways. We can't live forever, but we can have a high quality of life and be less plagued with diseases like cancer, allergies, ADD, infertility, diabeties, etc....
I can't tell you how to eat or live, but I can tell you about what we don't hear from our doctors, the media, and the food industry.
A great book to read is: "Real Food" by Nina Planck
It may take more time and effort to eat well, grow your own garden, shop at farmers markets, find a local farmer who sells meat without antibiotics and has no fertilized grazing areas and are not grain fed. But it's your health and your families health.... is that more important to you?

why eat natural, unprocessed, whole foods? (part 2)

I get a lot of people asking why I eat the way I do and why I take the time and effort to do so. Why do I worry about organic chicken, raw milk, free range beef, the list goes on. They wonder if I am just a radical Granola or someone who is afraid of the modern food conveniently offered to us? I would have to say it's neither....
I try and be as health conscious as possible because for me, my health and the health of my family is very important. I believe there needs to be a balance and our bodies can not become idols, but we do have to be responsible with what God has entrusted us with and our body is one of the most valuable things. By caring for our health through natural foods and organic products I feel I can have more energy to serve and minister to my family and the people around me as well as feeling good about myself.
I feel as if most people take food and health at face value. The package says its "fat free" and the medical community is telling us that "low fat" is better.... But, wait.... have we stopped to think about what kind of nutrients are really in that package that says it's "fat free", how did it get on that shelf and why do the doctors say "low fat" is best....
Take Splenda for example.... Just the other day some ladies in the gym locker room were talking about Splenda and how they use it and not sugar because it so much better for you..... (I wanted to yell "Don't do it! They were trying to make yard fertilizer when they created it!"... but I didn't:) The medical community and the media are telling us it's good, but is it really. If you do some research you will see that there has been very little research done on it and no one knows what it really does to the human body, besides the fact that yes indeed it was created by accident when scientist were trying to make yard fertilizer....:( But it made me realize how many people just believe what they are told, without question.
I started questioning and researching..... and what I am finding about our commercialized food industry, even packaged "natural" foods...  is appalling! I have changed my eating because of what I found when I actually asked questions. Yes, it takes more time to research and then possibly end up having to find a new product that is a truly healthy version, or better yet, make it from scratch. Yet, with the knowledge I have now about out food system here in America, I can not rightly fail to provide myself and my family with the unprocessed whole foods, even if it does take me twice as long to prepare. It is all about priorities.... What are your priorities?