Ten Things you can do to Improve your Diet

by Lauren McGinley

Eating! Who doesn't like to eat? I personally like eating some things more than others...say like, ice cream. :) Seriously though, we need food to fuel our bodies, just as gas and oil fuel cars. I'm afraid that not many people know much about the food they are consuming and whether or not it is actually healthy for them.

These days, most people get their nutrition information straight from the food manufacturers. Now I ask you, is that a good practice? Do you really want to be listening to the very people who stand to make ALOT of money based on what you put into your mouth? I think it's a dangerous thing to do. What about the thousands of ingredients and chemicals that do not even have to be mentioned on labels because they are used in processing? Who tells you about those? Are they really good for you?

Pre-mixed, pre-made, add water, open the can, snip the pouch, microwave. This is the foundation of what serves as an eating plan for many of us. We're taught by commercials to believe that cooking takes too long, that we're all too busy for it. The quicker the better. There's a total lack of nutrition in this pre-mixed/pre-made lifestyle. You're not getting fresh vegetables and all their fabulous vitmains, minerals and enzymes, you're getting powdered remnants of them. You're not eating a varied diet, an important way to get all the vitamins and minerals one needs for optimal health.

1) ELIMINATE ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS If one is looking for a healthy way of eating, eliminating all artificial sweeteners is a great place to start. There's not enough safety information on some sweeteners and too much clear and scary info on others.

http://www.sweetpoison.com/aspartame-information.html http://www.holisticmed.com/aspartame/

2) ELIMINATE PARTIALLY HYDROGENATED OILS A process to lengthen shelf life can shorten your life! Trans Fatty Acids created by hydogenation have been linked to cancer, cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Don't risk it!

http://my.webmd.com/content/article/70/81100.htm http://www.recoverymedicine.com/hydrogenated_oils.htm http://www.bantransfats.com/

3) ELIMINATE CORN SYRUPS and HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUPS (HFCS) Linked to obesity and now so very prevalent in just about every food category; tomato sauces, sodas, baked goods, even natural foods. They are also genetically modified. It's cheap, easy to manufacture and it's making us fat and unhealthy.

http://www.antiaginglifeextension.com http://www.leaflady.org/fructose.htm

4) LIMIT PACKAGED FOODS and EAT FOOD IN ITS MOST NATURAL STATE Ultimately, food in packages has more chance of having additives and chemicals. Unnecessary ingredients that can burden your body and decrease your health. You don't need the chemicals, extra salt, sugar and saturated fat that are prevalent in packaged foods.

Today, labeling is very complex. There are many ingredients that are used in processing and manufacturing that are not required to be on the label. You truly do not know what you are getting in some packages. So save the bags, boxes, cans and make your food from scratch.

Eating foods in their most natural state is best. Fresh broccoli (raw and cooked) will get you the most benefit nutritionally but if you can't get fresh, frozen is your best bet. Though be diligent about label reading as some brands again add unnecessary chemicals.

5) ELIMINATE FOOD ADDITIVES; MSG, CHEMICALS IN GENERAL, DYES Chemicals in our foods are not doing us much good. Dyes are made from coal tar (carcinogen). MSG sensitivites are well known. Our bodies are not meant to process a multitude of chemicals. We need to fuel our bodies with proper nutrition and foods that are wholesome and healthy.

http://www.msgtruth.org/ http://www.truthinlabeling.org/nomsg.html http://www.nomsg.com/ http://www.msgmyth.com/ http://www.cspinet.org/reports/chemcuisine.htm

6) ELIMINATE WHITE REFINED PROCESSED FOODS (white flour, white rice, white bread, white pasta) and INCREASE WHOLE GRAINS These refined foods are devoid of nutrition. Empty calories. White flour has only a small percentage of the nutrition of whole grain flour.

http://www.newstarget.com/000441.html http://waltonfeed.com/grain/flour.html

Whole grains on the other hand contain the oils, the bran, and all the vitamins, minerals, protein, and fiber nature intended. Whole grains are a fabulous source of fiber which has been shown to reduce colon cancer. Some rich sources are; brown rice, whole wheat, bulghur, millet, buckwheat, rye, barley, spelt, oats, quinoa.

7) EAT AT LEAST ONE SALAD and FRUIT EVERYDAY We should be eating at least 5 servings of fruit everyday. The vitamins, minerals, phytonutritients help protect us from disease.

I've found that by just trying to eat one salad each day that it's enough to keep me eating well. I sometimes will have more but if I follow this one salad rule, it seems to help us eat healthy all day.

8) CHOOSE ORGANIC I read once that the average american eats a pound of pesticides per year. Yuck! Can you imagine the toll that takes on the body (combined with all the other toxins from the environment)? The vitamin and mineral content of organic foods is said to be higher than the conventional counterparts.

http://www.ewg.org/reports/ops/risk.html http://www.elsonhaas.com/articles/article_02.html http://www.care2.com/channels/solutions/guides/242 http://www.sdearthtimes.com/et0996/et0996s5.html

9) EAT HIGH QUALITY FATS Essential fatty acids are "essential" to optimum health. If you're not taking an EFA supplement be sure to sprinkle freshly ground flax seeds on salads, oatmeal, in smoothies, etc. One tablespoon of ground flaxseeds a day can and will improve your health. A handful of walnuts is a great source as well. Some take fish oil but we believe the risks are too high.

Fatty Acids and Fish Oil http://www.pcrm.org/health/prevmed/ess_fat_acids.html http://borntoexplore.org/omega.htm

10) EAT 90% FOR NOURISHMENT AND 10% FOR FUN I read this somewhere recently and I thought it really hit home. If you maintain a healthy foundation, you CAN stray and have fun eating those foods that might not be considered so healthy.

Some more links to help on your journey to health;

http://www.drfuhrman.com/library/article13.aspx http://www.holisticmed.com/food.html http://www.healthyeatingadvisor.com/healthy-food.html

Written by Lauren McGinley, copyright 2005-6, AP mom to 2 spirited boys. Learn more at;
http://www.healthyparenting.net
and visit her other online sites; http://www.holisticwahmdirectory.com
A hand edited, consumer reviewed directory for the holistic WAHM community.
http://www.wahmhost.net
Hosting/Site Design with the MOM Advantage!