Taking the first step to improving your health usually includes the thought of eliminating or cutting back on something. This can be a helpful first step, but it seems to bring negative emotions with it. Does anyone really WANT to give up thier sweet treats or LIMIT the things they enjoy? Not likely.
But, what if you changed your mindset?
Instead of looking at improving your health through a lens of elimination, look at it from the angle of addition. Think of each thing you consume in a day as an opportunity to nourish yourself. Ask yourself ‘what does this food/drink have to offer?’ or ‘is there something similar that can offer more?’. The most commonly used ingredients seem to go through the most processing, stripping them of the nourishment they may have had and damaging the nutrients that are left behind.
Here are some of the easiest areas to begin the shift:
Sweeteners: Refined white sugar is by far the most common sweetener in most households today. The processing sugar goes through strips it of everything except the glucose itself, leaving no vitamins or minerals behind. Artificial sweeteners may not contain the calories or carbohydrates that other sweeteners do, but they also do not contain any nutrients. Brown sugar contains trace amounts of vitamins and minerals, thanks to its molasses content. Raw honey, blackstrap molasses, maple syrup, dates, and coconut sugar are all great sweetening options. Each contains its own blend of essential vitamins and minerals and other health boosting properties.
Nut and Seed Butters: Opt for a natural nut or seed butter with only nuts or seeds and their natural oil as ingredients. The most popular commercial choices almost always contain added sweetener, highly processed seed oils, salt and other additives. Quite often they also contain stabilizers and are homogenized or blended to prevent separation. This is my favorite natural peanut butter!
Yogurt and Oatmeal: Choose a plain yogurt or oatmeal, sweeten it with honey or maple syrup and flavor it with fruit or other spices. Often times commercial pre-mixed options are labeled as fruit flavored but contain little or no real fruit at all. The fruit flavor is created with various forms of sugar, concentrates or syrups, and natural and artificial flavors (none of which need to come from the fruit advertised on the package). Adding fresh or frozen fruit gives you the nutritional benefits of that fruit as well. If you really want to up the nutritional value, mix in some chia seeds, hemp hearts or flax seeds.
Salt: Salt is essential to the proper functioning of the human body. There are also specific minerals and trace elements required for each bodily process. Natural salts can contain many of these essentials, which makes them them a much better choice than plain old table salt. Not only is table salt lacking essential minerals, it is often bleached and contains anti-clumping agents and other additives. Try filling your salt shaker with Celtic salt, Himalayan pink salt, or Real salt. All of these are unrefined and provide minerals like magnesium, potassium, calcium, iron, zinc, and trace elements.
Oils: Oils are used in almost everything you cook, so the little bit you use with each meal can really add up…it a positive or negative way. First of all, ditch the seed oils. These include vegetable oil, canola oil, rapeseed oil, corn oil, sunflower oil, grapeseed oil, safflower oil, soy oil, cottonseed oil, and others. These types of oils are high in polyunsaturated fats, which produce free radicals. The free radicals can then wreak havoc on cells all throughout the body contributing to inflammation and other health issues. Some better plant-based options can be unrefined or cold-pressed olive oil, avocado oil, and coconut oil. Lard, tallow, and butter are also great, minimally processed oil options. Each of these oils has its own array of health benefits and best uses for cooking.
This way of thinking can also be applied to sourcing your food. Choose to purchase eggs, meat, and produce from local vendors or grow your own. Consider how far that food travels and the time that passes between harvest and reaching your table. Growing and living conditions, soil health, and feed all contribute to the overall nutrient value of a product. An egg from a free-range chicken down the street is going to have a higher nutrient density than one you’ll find in a grocery store.
The oil you cook in, salt you season with, peanut butter you choose, or farm your meat came from may not seem significant, but it adds up. Little by little you can choose to support your body or damage it. As you run out of items, search for an alternative that can offer you more nourishment. Not all products that are marketed as healthier options are actually better for us. This is where the question comes in… ask yourself “is this nutritious?” instead of “is this healthy?”.
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