Health is Wealth
You Are What You Eat!
Now I’m sure you’ve heard of the famous cliche, “You are what you eat.” Now try and imagine the CEO of Google or Elon Musk binge eating cheeseburgers, chips, ice cream, sugared candies, french fries, pizza, soda, and similar harmful food items. You get the drift.
The average person doesn’t realize the damaging effects these food items have on our total health. Anything we eat directly affects our endocrine system, microbial gut health, central nervous system, and even our skin.
Before I begin, I want to clarify this blog is not intended to help lose weight or put down other FAD diets such as Atkins, Keto, Paleo, et… The sole purpose of this blog is that we indeed are what we choose to put into our system.
We must start with a routine. Each individual should instill the necessity of the following three; hydration, exercise, and sleep are a must. Even if you choose the healthiest food choices and compromise on these three mentioned essentials, you will not be healthy overall.
Sleep deprivation leads to malfunctioning during the day. Not being alert, and even induces crankiness, anger, and negativity. So be sure to sleep for a minimum of 6 hours straight. Put away your smartphones and get off of social media. Turn off your television. Let your mind unwind from technology and be at peace with its body, not looking for the next entertainment or stimulation. If you must, put on some calming sounds or meditation music and fall asleep knowing you were the best version of you possible. Sleeping is when the majority of cellular healing, repair, and detoxification occurs. Might I suggest taking Vitamin D each night before you sleep. It has proven to accelerate the healing process while you sleep.
Hydration is Key. Not just for clear, glowing skin, but also for your energy level and for the body to operate correctly. Hydration boosts your metabolism and fat burning rate. So it can help you lose weight more healthily. Water is a natural appetite suppressant. So if you drink more, primarily you eat less. Water also helps remove waste and toxins. It helps your kidneys filter toxins and waste while the organs retain essential nutrients and electrolytes. Healthy hydration cuts calories. Any other drink will always contain more calories. Additionally, water increases your workout effectiveness. Water helps muscles, connective tissues, and joints move correctly, as well as improves your lungs, heart, and other organs work effectively during exercise. Water also reduces the risks of muscle cramps. Always drink water before, during, and after a workout. You should drink water every day. Most people should drink 6 to 8, 8-ounce glasses of water each day. That’s a reasonable goal. However, different people need different amounts of water to stay hydrated. Most healthy people can stay well hydrated by drinking water and other fluids whenever they feel thirsty. For some people, fewer than eight glasses may be enough. Other people may need more than eight glasses each day.
Exercise optimizes circulation so that each cell gets the necessary support. You cannot be healthy without exercising. Exercising releases endorphins that help you stay focused, positive, happy, and increase your endurance and stamina. For many, exercising helps build their self -confidence and decrease depression. Win-win, isn’t it? Even if its 15 minutes a day, do it.
Now let’s talk about food intake. I can go on and on about foods that are severely unhealthy for you like cereals, sugar-filled desserts, high calorie items, sugared soda, and fried food. You might want to try by reading the serving size information. If the sugar, saturated fat, trans fat, sodium, and calories are high, forget about it will ya. Do you want to put JUNK in your body? Your body is a ticking timer. You can choose to feed it healthy foods or unhealthy. The choice is yours, but then remember, so are the ramifications.
As I mentioned earlier, eating healthy can resolve many illnesses. I’m referring to minor coughs, congestion, gastrointestinal issues, autoimmune diseases, depression, anxiety, stress, muscle cramps, and more. It’s true! Medication should be your last resort. In my opinion, you should initially try natural remedies. And if it doesn’t work for you, then you can resort to medication. So the sooner you decide to eat healthy, the less chance of illness. If you eat garbage, you will look like and feel like garbage and even talk trash too (because your nervous system is not getting proper nutrients). By eating unhealthy foods as a habit, you train your endocrine system to be tired all the time and sudden cravings for more sugar/fat/junk. You are damaging your gut as none of these foods aid in proper digestion. And believe it or not, you are also severely damaging your mind. The more junk you eat, you are depriving your cells of nutrient-dense foods. They cannot heal properly, and the breakdown of cells causes anger, crankiness, and negative thoughts. You try and fight it, but only so much works. You must start eating healthy to attain a healthy mind. Think about it; the better the fuel in your vehicle, the more it runs smoother. Same with our body. If you treat it right from the outside in, the inside out will show you positive results.
Many nutritionist believe there is a direct connection between gut health and overall health. An unhealthy gut links to everything from compromised immunity (such as myself), brain fog, bloating, skin issues, eczema. If you fix your gut, 99% of your problems are solved. Antibiotics are the biggest enemy to gut health because they kill harmful bacteria and the good. A poor diet and pesticides can harm you unless you make it a conscious effort to get HEALTHY! Fixing your gut is not as hard as one may think. It may take time, but it is very doable. Start intaking probiotics and prebiotics. For more on this, please google the immense benefits. My best advice is a supplement. While some doctors recommend yogurt and kombucha, I believe they make the body more acidic. Remember everything in moderation. Balance is key. Too much acidic foods can harm your gut drastically.
What are excellent SUPERFOODS we should include on a routine basis, (notice I did not say diet. This is not a diet. It’s a healthy lifestyle)?
SUPERFOODS:
Red Vegetables: Tomatoes, beets, red peppers help improve collagen formation and contain lycopene to protect the cells from free radical damage. It is a natural sunblock.
Orange Vegetables: Vitamin A helps heal and repair. Vitamin A found in high levels in orange vegetables, including carrots, yams, and sweet potatoes.
Fish Oil: Salmon and other fish are very high in Omega-3 Oil. Omega-3 creates healthier cells by supporting the protective fatty membranes around the skin cells. If you cannot eat fish, flax or chia seeds are a good alternative.
Eggs: Eggs are loaded with protein and fats that help support the production of collagen. Eggs are also a good source of vitamin A. The yolk mainly contains biotin, a nutrient essential for healthy hair and nails.
Fermented Foods: Sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha, yogurt, and kefir are all fermented foods loaded with live bacteria, known as probiotics. Probiotics boost your digestive system, allowing for improved absorption of nutrients, increased detoxification, decreased inflammation, improved immune function, and balanced hormones, all of which help your gut, skin, and nervous system, as long as the products you choose are not pasteurized, as pasteurization destroys the benefit of live bacteria.
Coconut Oil: Coconut oil is a great way to nourish the body. It’s medium-chain fatty-acid, meaning it can take high heat in cooking without becoming unstable. This delicious oil is easily absorbed by the small intestine, delivering more energy than any other fat. It is antiviral, antimicrobial, and has immune-boosting properties.
Avocados: Avocados are a healthy fat, fiber, phytonutrients, and antioxidants. The antioxidants have a protective benefit, and the fiber is excellent for digestive health.
Watermelon: Watermelon contains Vitamin C, which is a water-soluble vitamin. Vitamin C impacts activity. Enzyme production, immune system regulation, and nutrient absorption. Vitamin C also affects the function of Bifidobacterium and Clostridium species. It is a powerful antioxidant, can protect against cardiovascular disease, boost immunity, promote, nutrient utilization, and help fight vision loss.
Berries: Antioxidants such as berries improve collagen protection. Some berries like cranberries contain flavonoids, which are a class of polyphenols. Polyphenols are a complex group of many compounds released following microbial metabolism. They also balance your gut health, encourage the growth of beneficial Lactobacillus and Bifidobacteria species, and inhibit the growth of harmful pathogenic bacteria. Polyphenols decrease inflammation and benefit the gastrointestinal, hormonal, neurological, ocular, and immune system.
Dark Green Leafy Vegetables: Kale, alfalfa, and spinach are lovely for the skin. They support and increase collagen production. They are also full of antioxidants. But remember everything in moderation. Too much Kale or Spinach is not a good thing. The gut should always be balanced.
Anchovies: Anchovies contain essential fatty acids, which are a class of unsaturated fatty acids. Essential fatty acids are critical for a stable microbiome. They increase microbial diversity and beneficial butyrate-producing bacteria. Butyrate is an anti-inflammatory and promotes a healthy gut lining by tightening the junctions between cells. Research shows that essential fatty acids nourish your brain, enhance gut health, and decrease inflammation. Inulin also increases microbial diversity, prevents constipation, helps manage weight, regulates blood sugar, and aids with gastrointestinal distress.
Artichoke: Artichokes contain inulin, which is prebiotic. Inulin is converted by your microbiome to produce butyrate.
Black Beans: Black beans contain magnesium which is a natural mineral. Magnesium is excellent for your microbiome. It can increase Bifidobacterium species. These microbes help digest fiber, which produces butyrate, a short-chain fatty acid that balances inflammation, and some Bifidobacteria further promote the release of nutrients like magnesium from dietary sources. Magnesium decreases inflammation, protects your heart, and is an essential cofactor for many different enzymes.
Broccoli: Broccoli contains folate, which is a B Vitamin. Folate created by your gut bacteria like Streptococcus Thermophilic and Lactobacillus Lactis helps generate red blood cells, synthesize DNA, and enhance energy metabolism.
Garlic: Garlic contains FOS, which is prebiotic. It stimulates butyrate, a short-chain fatty acid that decreases inflammation and strengthens your gut lining. FOS also helps manage weight.
Pumpkin Seeds: Pumpkin seeds contain delta-7-sterols and beta-sitosterol, which are hormone metabolizers. They increase microbial diversity, nourish your brain, enhance gut health, and decrease inflammation. Pumpkin seeds are also high in Zinc, which protects cell membranes and helps maintain and produce collagen. Zinc also helps fight breakouts.
COMMON FOODS TO AVOID: (These foods do not contain beneficial components and are known to be harmful to all gut health. Avoid these food items whenever possible.)
Agave Nectar
Aspartame Beans (baked or fried)
Beet Sugar
Canned Vegetables
Canola Oil
Corn Syrup (cause blood sugar rising, energy crashes, hormonal imbalances, linked to cancer, diabetes, and obesity)
Cured Meat
Dextrose
French Fries
Fruit Juices
Granola Bars
Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil
Iodized Salt (increases water retention, and cause swelling and puffiness)
Lard
Maltose
Margarine
Oatmeal (flavored)
Processed Cheese
Processed Meat
Rice Cakes (flavored)
Saccharin
Shortening
Soda (regular or diet) (zero nutritional value and filled with high amounts of sugar and chemicals)
Sucralose
Sugar (white) (cause blood sugar to rise, energy crashes, hormonal imbalances, linked to cancer, diabetes, and obesity)
White Flour (very acidic and causes blood sugar to spike)
Yogurt (flavored)
Healthy digestion and steady metabolism are crucial to feeling and looking great. But many people cause their metabolism to slow down with fad diets, starve, and binge. It is best to eat 3-5 meals a day to balance your body’s natural hunger signals. Food should be nourishment not to satisfy a craving or something to avoid. The best solution is not to eat past 7 p.m. Adding SUPERFOODS to your nutrition will help in weight management. And believe it or not, SLEEP is your best friend in both losing excess weight and anti-aging. Experts recommend sleeping between 6-8 hours. Sleep will help with better digestion, anti-inflammation, and beautiful skin.
So as you can see, you are what you eat, or you are what you absorb. I myself chose not to be on any labeled diet. I prefer to eat healthy with an occasional fun day. I am eating healthy, and it works great for me. Hopefully, my tips from this blog will help you achieve the best version of yourself from inside out.
If this information was pertinent for you and you are dealing with some illness and pains, or plain and simple want to lose weight, please subscribe to my site by inputting your email, and you will receive monthly information on how to live Happy & Healthy.
GOOD LUCK & CHEERS TO GOOD HEALTH
Yours in Wellness,