Health Update

Food nutrition is the foundation of good health. Everyone needs the four basic nutrients – water, carbohydrates, proteins and fats, as well as vitamins, minerals and other micronutrients.

WATER : The human body is two-thirds water. It is an essential nutrient that is involved in every function of the body. It helps transport nutrients and waste products in and out of the cell. By drinking an adequate amount of water each day at lest 8 ounce glasses you can ensure that your body has all it needs to maintain good health. It would be best to drink magnetized water to maximize your benefit from water.

CARBOHYDRATES : It supply the body with the energy it needs to function. They are found almost exclusively in plant foods, such as fruits, vegetables, peas and beans. Milk and milk products are the only foods derived from animals that contain a significant amount of carbohydrates.

Carbohydrates are the main source of blood glucose, which is a major fuel for all of the body’s cells and the only source of energy for the brain and red blood cells. When choosing carbohydrate rich foods for your diet, always select unrefined foods such as fruits, vegetables, peas, beans and whole grain products, as opposed to refined, processed foods such as soft drinks, desserts, candy and sugar. Refined foods offer few, if any of the vitamins and minerals that are important to your health.

Carbohydrates are divided into two groups: simple carbohydrates and complex carbohydrates. Simple carbohydrates, sometimes called simple sugars, include fructose (fruit sugar), sucrose (table sugar) and lactose (milk sugar), as well as several other sugars, Fruits are one of the richest natural sources of simple carbohydrates. Complex carbohydrates are also made up of sugars, but the sugar molecules are strung together to form longer, more complex chains.

It is recommended that about 60 percent of your total daily calories come from carbohydrates. If much of your diet consists of healthy complex carbohydrates, you should easily fulfill the recommended daily minimum of 25 grams of fiber.

PROTEIN : It is essential for growth and development. It provides the body with energy, and is needed for the manufacture of hormones, antibodies, enzymes and tissues. It also helps maintain the proper acid-alkali balance in the body when protein is consumed, the body breaks it down into amino acids, the building blocks of all proteins. Some of the amino acids are designated nonessential. This does not mean that they are unnecessary, but rather that they do not have to come from the diet because they can be synthesized by the body from other amino acids. Other amino acids are considered essential, meaning hat the body cannot synthesize them, and therefore must obtain them from the diet.

Whenever the body makes a protein when it builds muscle, for instance it needs a variety of amino acids for the protein-making process. These amino acids. If a shortage of amino acids becomes chronic, which can occur if the diet is deficient in essential amino acids, the building of protein in the body stops, and the body suffers. Because of the importance of consuming proteins that provide all of the body suffers. Because of the importance of consuming proteins that provide all of the necessary amino acids, dietary proteins are considered to belong two different groups, depending on the amino acids they provide. Complete proteins, which constitute the first group, contain ample amounts of all of the essential amino acids. These proteins are found in meat, fish, poultry, cheese, eggs and milk. Incomplete proteins which constitute the second group, contain only some of the essential amino acids. These proteins are found in a variety of foods, including grains, legumes and leafy green vegetables. Although it is important to consume the full range of amino acids, both essential and nonessential, it is not necessary to get them from meat, fish, poultry and other complete – protein foods. In fact, because of their high fat content as well as the use of antibiotic and other chemicals in the raising of poultry and cattle – most of these foods should be eaten in moderation. Fortunately, the dietary strategy called mutual supplementation enables you to combine partial protein foods to make complementary protein – proteins that supply adequate amounts of all the essential amino acids.

FATS: Although much attention has been focused on the need to reduce dietary fat. The body does need fat. During infancy and childhood, fat is necessary for normal brain development. Throughout life, it is essential to provide energy and support growth. Fat is, in fact, the most concentrated source of energy available to the body. However, after about two years of age, the body requires only small amounts of fat. Excessive fat intake is a major causative factor in obesity, high blood pressure, coronary heart disease and colon cancer, and has been linked to a number of other disorders as well.

VITAMINS AND MINERALS: Like water, carbohydrates, protein and fats, vitamins and minerals are essential to life. They are therefore considered nutrients and are often referred to as micronutrients simply because they are needed in relatively small amounts compared with the fair basic nutrient. (This I will discuss as a separate Health Update.)

Guidelines for Selecting and preparing foods:

Avoid foods that contain additives and artificial ingredients.
Increase your consumption of raw produce.
Avoid overcooking your foods.
Use the proper cooking utensils.
Limit your use of salt.

Avoid Foods that contain Additives and Artificial Ingredients

Additives are placed in foods for a number of reasons: to lengthen shelf life: to make a food more appealing by enchancing color, texture or taste; to facilitate food preparation; or to otherwise make the product more marketable.

Increase your CONSUMPTION of RAW PRODUCE

The most healthful fruits and vegetables are those that have been grown organically without the use of insecticides, herbicides, artificial fertilizers or growth stimulating chemicals. When choosing your produce, look for fruits and vegetables that are at the peak of ripeness, These contain more vitamins and enzymes than do foods that are under ripe or overripe, or that have been stored for any length of time. REMEMBER that the longer a food is kept in storage, the more nutrients it losses.

Avoid overcooking your foods

Cooking foods for all but brief periods of time can destroy many valuable nutrients. More alarming is that when foods are cooked to the point of browning or charring, the organic compounds they contain undergo changes in structure, producing carcinogens.

Use the proper cooking utensils

When preparing foods, use only glass, stainless steel or iron pots and pans, Do not use aluminum cookware or utensils. Foods cooked or stored in aluminum produce a substance that neutralizes the digestive juices, leading to acidosis and ulcers. Worse, the aluminum in the cookware can leach from the pot into the food. When the food is consumed, the aluminum is absorbed by the body, where it accumulates in the brain and nervous system tissues. Excessive amounts of these aluminum deposits have been implicated in Alzheimer’s disease.

Limit your SALT INTAKE

Although some sodium is essential for survival, inadequate sodium intake is a rare problem. We need less than 500 mgs. of sodium in day to stay healthy. One of the best ways to limit the sodium in your diet is to limit your use of salt when cooking and dining Just as important, stay away from processed foods, which often contain excessively high amount of sodium.