Your diet may be failing you! What are you going to do about it?
Right now, there’s a good chance that your diet is woefully inadequate when it comes to ensuring that you’re in the best possible health. In fact, it’s possible that your diet may even be killing you!And what’s the culprit? One is empty calories. Another is processed foods.
These days, a huge proportion of the foods we eat are already prepared and processed. Those foods have spent a lot of time in factories. They often bear little resemblance to their original ingredients.One good example is a bag of chips. It probably doesn’t have much potato left in it. Chocolate is made from a cocoa bean but the rest is processed. And ready made lasagna will have had all the goodness cooked out of it, while a ton of salt, sugar and bad fats have been added to keep it preserved.All of this means that you’re getting calories from your diet. Those calories may provide you with some energy, some weight gain, but little nutrition.
Why We Need Nutrition
Don’t think of food as fuel. Calories are fuel and they happen to be in our food. But food is much more than that. Food is a social event, and sometimes a hobby. Food should also be a source of raw materials. The saying that you are what you eat is true, literally. When you eat a meal, your body breaks it down into its constituent parts. Then those parts are reassembled to build your muscle, and to create enzymes, hormones, neurotransmitters, etc. When you don’t get the proper nutrients, you find yourself not feeling so good. If you don’t get enough vitamin C, for example, your immune system won’t be able to perform at its best. That will make you much more likely to become ill. Vitamin C is also crucial for helping you produce serotonin. Take that away and your mood will plummet. It also helps us sleep.Similarly, when you don’t get enough omega 3 fatty acid, inflammation can result. This may make your joints hurt. It creates brain fog, and it can lead to illness.
A lack of amino acids will mean that your muscles are weaker and smaller. Your skin will look grey and your nails will become brittle.
These short term issues are worthy of concern, but more worrisome are the long term health effects. The damage is cumulative. You will be more likely to suffer from a range of diseases.
What to do About Your Diet
The answer is to stop thinking of any old food as fuel. Instead think about the quality of the raw materials you’re putting into your system. Find ways to get more nutritious food into your diet.
