fresh carrots
Once A Bonus, Now A Necessity
An under-nourished body can lead to all sorts of health conditions from common colds and flu’s to chronic diarrhea, kidney stone pain and many more. The first and best of all home remedies is to eat a well balanced diet and make sure you are well nourished. Simply doing this can prevent a many illnesses.
There was a time when the family table was furnished with food fresh from the garden or field. Nowadays, though, most of what we eat is processed in some way. And whether the processing is for preservation or for taste, it always does one thing: processing destroys vitamins and minerals.
Nourishing Your Body:
Consider the Carrot
For example, carrots are an excellent source of vitamins A and C. Freeze the carrot and you have destroyed 5 percent of the vitamin A and 30 percent of the vitamin C. Boil or bake the carrot and say goodbye to 25 percent of the vitamin A and 50 percent of the vitamin C. Pour the juices off, after cooking … and there goes another 10 percent of your hard-earned vitamin A and 25 percent of the available vitamin C.
When you do the math, you find that the difference in Vitamin C levels between eating a carrot raw and eating it after it has been cooked and the juice drained, is a net nutritional loss of 75 percent for vitamin C and 35 percent for vitamin A. Worse yet, since today’s mega-farm agricultural methods have rendered the typical grocery store vegetable already depleted in vitamins and minerals, there isn’t much to work with in the first place.
This is Almost Unbelievable
Another popular method of food processing is that of milling grain. Consumers prefer (or have been taught to prefer) flour that is smooth and white. In attaining that state, large quantities of nutrients are removed. Manufacturers add synthetic vitamins and minerals back in the mix to make enriched flour. That doesn’t make up for everything that was lost, though, and the added nutrients may not be in a form that is readily accessible by your body. Does it seem nonsensical that we would take out the best, most nutritious part of the natural grain, process it, then spray it with synthetics to help make up for the loss? That is surely one of the great mysteries of modern health science. Future generations will look at us and shake their heads in wonder.
Every person needs a balanced diet containing appropriate portions of carbohydrates, protein, fats, vitamins and minerals. But processed foods present us with a health challenge unheard of in the not-too-distant past: It is now possible to over-eat, but still be under-nourished. In years past, body fat was a symbol of prosperity. Today, it may be more a symbol of a desperate attempt for the body to attain the essential nutrients it needs to survive.
Eating Smarter
What can you do to protect yourself and your family?
- Eat more whole foods and raw foods. Buy organic produce find a local farmer who still works the soil as much as possible using natural methods instead of relying on pesticides and synthetic fertilizers.
- Supplement your diet with a trusted brand of vitamins and minerals. There was a time when daily vitamin and mineral supplements were a luxury, but they have become a necessity for most of us. Your body must receive the nutrition it needs on a daily basis, and chances are really high you are not getting that nutrition from the grocery store.
Do not count on the food manufacturers to deliver wholesome products. Seek out a trustworthy source of the micro-nutrients you need in order to ensure that each cell of your body functions properly – doing its part in providing you with long-lasting health and energetic vitality.
Author Lane Goodberry focuses on health and nutrition issues.
July 15, 2012
This is a very interesting and informative article. It is amazing that today in the modern world many people are over-eating all the wrong types of food. We must train ourselves not to be suckered into the marketing and advertising that subtly influences our choices in the foods we buy.
February 16, 2013
The saying “You are what you eat” has a lot of merit in my opinion… thanks again Jane