Healthy Fuel

I'm sick again today.  Last week I think it was just exhaustion.  This week, I'm bona-fide home sick with the flu.  I figured, though, that I might as well make lemonade out of life's lemons and blog between trips to the bathroom (TMI, I know... sorry).

I thought I'd share some thoughts on food today.  Until recently, the only thing I really cared about when it came to food was taste.  But as I have really become interested in health and wellness, losing weight, and becoming physically active, I've done a lot of reading about food.  The more I read, the more I'm coming to realize that healthy eating isn't just about fat/carb/protein content.  While that's a big part of it, it's also about everything else in the food we eat.

Here are some interesting things I learned:

White flour has little or no nutritional value.  It is processed in your body more like a sugar than a grain, and provides you with few nutrients.  Sprinkle a little white flour near an ant hill and watch them treat it like dirt.  Sprinkle whole wheat flour on the ant hill and you'll see them go into a frenzy.  They love whole foods.  Even ants know what is good for them and what isn't.

Sugar is not the devil.  There's sugar in fruits and veggies.  Our bodies' preferred source of energy is sugar.  It gives us a feeling of euphoria and can provide you with a little boost (when eaten in moderation).  Processed sugar should be avoided when possible, however, it isn't the worst you could do.  There are healthier alternatives to sugar, like Agave Nectar, Honey, and Stevia.

Are artificial sweeteners better for you than sugar? No. Many artifical sweeteners still trigger your body's insulin levels, causing you to store energy in the form of fat.  You would probably do better with a sweetener like Honey or Agave Nectar.  Additionally, some sweeteners have been linked to cancer.  If our goal is a healthy body and a healthy lifestyle, why would we risk cancer? While you may be able to avoid the carbs and calories by using artificial sweeteners, the net effect on your body may be even worse.

The human body does not particularly love red meat.  That's right, I said it.  Red meat has all kinds of ill effects including hightening risk of heart disease, colon cancer, hypertension and even endometriosis.  I personally believe that when eaten sparingly, these risks can be limited.  But even when eaten, you should shop around for organic, grass fed beef.  Most commercial beef is grain fed.  Grain fed beef have to be pumped full of anti-biotics and are usually trated with hormnones as well to make them grow fast and grow fat.  This was a good article on that.

When you analyze some of the things American's eat on any given day, it's no wonder we're the most unhealthy developed nation in the world.  We eat fast food, processed food, and junk food.  It's difficult go out to eat without getting one or all of the above named unclean foods.  But by planning ahead, and learning to make our own healthy and nutritious meals, we can avoid going through that fast food drive-thru. 

We could discuss this topic for hours and not reach the end, but the main points I'd like to communicate today are, simply:
1) Learn what is really in your food, and where it really comes from.
2) Know how food affects your body.
3) Never eat fast food.  Never.  Plan ahead.
4) Learn to cook, if you need to.
5) Always eat whole, clean food.

Just like a gas engine can't run long on mixed fuel, our bodies can't run on unhealthy fuel. 


A good resource for food IQ:
The Food Revolution: How Your Diet Can Help Save Your Life and Our World
Jamie Oliver is awesome.  Get his book:
Jamie's Food Revolution: Rediscover How to Cook Simple, Delicious, Affordable Meals

See other links in previous posts for some more enlightening reading!