A SAD diet
“We do not have a magical supply of nutrients stored in our left butt cheek"
We have to consume vitamins, minerals, amino acids, electrolytes EVERY SINGLE DAY. There has been decades of focus surrounding food and the perfect diet with debate on calories, carbs, fats, or proteins. If we break it all down, we know that the human body is incredibly resilient and capable of surviving challenges. If it is nourished that is. In order to thrive, we need oxygen, water, minerals, amino acids (protein), vitamins, essential fats, fiber, glucose (sugar), phytonutrients, and enzymes. These are the building blocks of human cells, which turn into tissues, which turns into systems, which make up the human. If we don’t supply the body with the needed fuel, it will not function properly. No gas, no go.
Looking at things from a chemistry perspective, a body that is not supported by nutrients does not function optimally which creates poor health. Poor health attracts disease. Therefore, food matters. A lot. In our society there is a high demand for nutrients due to genetic variants, stressful lifestyle, toxicity and crap foods. We lack a good supply of nutrients, due to digestion/absorption issues, conversion issues at a cellular level, and nutrient poor food, or foods that are stripped of nutrients but ladded with chemicals. We are NOT what we eat. We are what we DIGEST, ABSORB, and get past the cell membrane. There is a lot involved and the body needs support in order to make that happen.
The food companies are fertilizing plants to make bigger produce with more calories, but the same amount of nutrients. Hybridization emphasizes vegetables that look good or are more convenient to grow, but not as nutrient dense as their predecessors. An example is the Marathon hybrid of broccoli, that has 35% fewer minerals than other hybrids currently sold (and that baseline is already 50% less than what we had in 1975!). Add to that the issue with topsoil erosion where there is less mineral density available in plants. No wonder why so many people are struggling with chronic health issues.
Body’s demand-Nutrient supplied= Life experience
Surviving vs Thriving
Feeling “fine” vs. Feeling “fantastic”
Food supplies our bodies with vitamins, minerals, protein, fats, fiber, carbohydrates, enzymes, water, phytonutrients… and information! Beyond nutrients, food is affecting our genetic expression of diseases. You cannot out supplement a bad diet.
There is a quick acronym health coaches and practitioners use to summarize a clients’ diet and it is S.A.D, which stands for the “Standard American Diet”.
So what do we do? To keep it simple I have two rules I start every patient out with.
Rule #1– EAT REAL FOOD.
Eat food that is made from a plant, not made in a plant. Check the ingredient label and if it has five ingredients or less, it is probably a food and safe to eat.
#2– Avoid the top three things that no humans should consume.
Deplete nutrients because they take a lot of effort for the body to detox. Toxins increases stress and inflammation in our bodies. Toxins impairs our bodies ability to create energy and detox them.
3. Stress
One of which is trans fat from vegetable or canola oil. Throw it away! Products that have it in it are cookies, potato chips, fried fast food, popcorn, crackers. It damages our cell membranes which is where all the magic happens with hormones receptors. Trans fats are the most inflammatory fats we have.
Also avoid high fructose corn syrup. It is an super sugar that is primarily responsible for fatty liver and obesity. It is hidden in many foods in America including pasta sauce, juices, cereals, yogurts, candies, soda, etc.
Lastly, avoid MSG, which is a factory made science project that is added to food in order to cause uncontrollable hunger, binge eating, headaches, allergies, and it damages our gut lining. MSG also triples our insulin production, leading to a storage of belly fat. Hidden names for MSG are “flavors” or “flavoring”, anything with “enzymes”, “hydrolyzed”, “glutamate”, “autolyzed plant”, “bouillon or broth”, “carrageenan”, “glutamate”, “maltodextrin”, “monosodium glutamate”, “natural seasonings”, “protease”, “stock”, “yeast extract or yeast food”.
These 2 rules are an amazing place to start to change your health. We can overcome a SAD diet. Being aware of what we are putting in our mouth is a large part of starting to improve our health and wellbeing. Food matters. A LOT.
If you are interested in changing your eating habits but need some direction, Rapha Functional Wellness can help.
Kristi Lorenc andAmy Altamash are Nurse Practitioners trained in Functional Medicine who can help you improve your health to obtain your wellness goals. Book a free 15-minute consultor email us at [email protected] with any questions.
