7 Real Truths Behind A Healthy Diet Food Companies Don’t Want You To Know
What Is A Healthy Diet?
A healthy diet comprises foods and drinks that you should consume in the right quantity at the right times to maintain or improve your overall health. A healthy diet can
Reduce your risk of chronic diseases
Boost your energy and mental clarity
Promote a better quality of life
Help you live longer
The key components of a healthy diet include carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals, fiber and water. You can get these from vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds.
Why Do People Want To Eat Healthy?
There are 3 key reasons people want to eat a healthy diet.
To stay attractive and fit.
To prevent disease.
To manage disease.
Whatever your reason for wanting to eat a healthy diet, a healthy diet can give you the ultimate benefit of leading a longer, healthier and more meaningful life.
Healthy Diet Truth 1: A healthy diet does not consist of packaged food that has any of the following:
Food Colours
These refer to added food dyes that make food products look bright and attractive.
Chemical Preservatives
Chemical preservatives are added to almost all factory manufactured foods to extend their shelf life.These chemicals stop yeast and fungus growth.
Artificial Flavours
As genuine flavours are expensive, food manufacturers use lab-produced chemicals to replicate tastes like cherry, blueberry and vanilla.
Other Additives
Other additives used to enhance the flavour and texture of foods include emulsifiers, gelling agents, thickening agents and much more.
Excess salt, sugar and fat.
These ingredients are added in packaged foods so that you get addicted or hooked. That way, you cannot stop with one and keep going back to your grocery store for more.
You will find the above in the ingredient list in small fonts at the back of the packaging in your nearby supermarkets. And many of these additives have been studied to have carcinogenic properties (cancer-causing properties). However, the damage these chemicals cause are often incremental (spread over many years) and hence often ignored.
Healthy Diet Truth 2: A healthy diet does not contain refined sugar
Refined sugar refers to white sugar or brown sugar. Brown sugar is white sugar that has had molasses added back into it and hence it is refined too.
Sugar is often hidden behind more complex terms such as maltodextrin, maltose, glucose, sucrose, dextrose, sorbitol, dextrose, high fructose corn syrup and more)
The best alternatives for refined sugar are unrefined sweeteners like dates, figs, raisins and sweet fruits. Other alternatives for refined sugar include minimally refined sweeteners like coconut sugar or jaggery. Aim to purchase chemical-free jaggery from an authentic brand, keeping in mind that the darker the jaggery, the purer it tends to be.
Healthy Diet Truth 3: A healthy diet does not contain refined wheat
As refined wheat has their bran and germ removed, they are stripped of essential nutrients and missing the fibrous bran. This causes our digestive system to have to work harder to push it out of the body. Especially when eaten regularly, this results in incomplete digestion and the accumulation of toxins inside our body.
Refined Wheat (also known as maida in Hindi) is found in most breads, cakes, pastries, pizzas, pastas, croissants, buns, noodles and wraps that are sold today. While wholemeal bread brands may use refined wheat as one of their ingredients, they often have additives like emulsifiers and highly processed ingredients like skim milk powder.
The best alternatives for refined wheat is whole wheat flour, chickpea flour (also known as besan in Hindi) or millet flours.
Healthy Diet Truth 4: Meat In Your Diet May Not Be As Healthy As You Think
While animal based proteins, especially lean, unprocessed meat such as fish, have been assessed by some studies to provide essential nutrients, other studies have indicated a higher risk of diseases like heart disease when we consume meat.
Here are more potential dangers of animal protein that is backed by scientific research.
Also, many people have healed from lots of diseases by adopting a wholesome plant based diet without dairy and processed foods. This is further evidence to support the power of wholesome, plant based foods.
Healthy Diet Truth 5: You Can Get Adequate Protein From Plant Based Foods
Whole plant foods such as beans, tofu, lentils, nuts and seeds have high proportions of proteins. Even grains like quinoa and millets are often packed with proteins. And most veggies have some amount of protein too! This means that as long as you eat a wide variety of plant based foods, you never need to worry about having inadequate protein. Even athletes are getting enough protein from plant based foods and one such example is marathoner, Matt Frazier.
If you want more examples of athletes who are thriving on plant based diets, the Netflix documentary, The Game Changers, could give you some assurance. If athletes who are active throughout their day can get enough protein while eating plant based, why can’t we?.
Healthy Diet Truth 6: You can notice changes in your body with a healthy diet in as little as 3 weeks
When you quit processed and packaged foods, and cut out refined sugar and refined wheat, you may notice these changes in your body in as little as 3 weeks.
Reduced puffiness in your face and belly
More glowing skin
Sustained energy throughout the day
Less cravings for unhealthy foods
These are just short term changes that you will notice with a healthy diet. In the ling term, healthy diets have the power to prevent and even heal you from diseases.
Healthy Diet Truth 7: People Have Reversed Diseases With A Healthy Diet
A healthy diet can not only keep you fit and at your ideal weight. Healthy diets have the power to manage and prevent diseases when coupled with effective stress management techniques. While people may find the thought of reversing diseases with a healthy diet crazy, the truth is that it is possible. Here are 100s of success stories from people who have done just that.
Besides the diet you consume, there are other factors that can affect your health and wellbeing significantly. This includes how much and what quality of rest you give your body and how effectively you manage your emotions and stress levels. You can read more about other healthy practices such as exercise, fasting, sleep, breathing techniques, purposeful living and spirituality here.
