We are certainly not suffering any shortage of so-called health experts and fitness gurus these days. They're offering their tips and advice in virtually every magazine at the grocery store check out, they're found in droves on the internet, and some of the top rated reality and talk shows on television feature the most well-known of these celebrity gurus.
It's fantastic that we have so many of these experts to refer to and call upon. Advice on getting fit and maintaining a healthy body composition couldn't be timelier. The rates of obesity, diabetes and other chronic illnesses directly related to them, are at all time highs. Childhood obesity is skyrocketing at alarming rates as well.
If we have more "health" advice being doled out to us than ever before, yet we're fatter and sicker than ever before, what's the deal? Something's not matching up!
While I believe there are several overlapping, interconnecting lifestyle and environmental factors at play, I believe that one of the most damaging trends is the peddling of misinformation and incorrect focus, based on a faulty paradigm of "health".
Health is a state of homeostatic cell function. Health is not defined by how you look or what size your jeans are. Although, a healthy body composition and fit physique are the natural by-products of a healthy lifestyle.
We achieve health by meeting our body's innate genetic requirements: creating purity and sufficiency in the way we move, eat and think, consistently and for the long run. We lose our health (move away from homeostatic cell function) when we make toxic and deficient lifestyle choices.
Is it possible to experience optimal health and function if you're obese? No, it's not. Is it important to shed some of that toxic fat and overbearing weight? Yes, it really is. Excess body fat and weight are truly dangerous to your health and quality of life. But, I believe we're all intelligent and experienced enough to recognize that not all methods of dropping weight and fat are safe or beneficial. Health needs to come first.
I'm downright bothered by the number of "experts" whose primary advice regarding getting healthy includes a major emphasis on counting calories. I don't believe that knowing the caloric intake of your meal is inherently a bad thing. What I do believe is devastating is the exclusive focus on the number of calories (or fat grams or grams of sodium) at the expense of overall nutritional and health value.
Time and time again, I read reports, articles and interviews by experts (doctors, nutritionists, trainers, celebrities, etc.) where they are literally advising people to use artificial sweeteners in their recipes, or to purchase low-fat, fat-free, low calorie or some other manipulated food for the sole purpose of cutting calories and fat.
Again, I get it. You can't be healthy if you're obese. But, you definitely can't be healthy if you're toxic! Remember, health only happens as a result of purity and sufficiency.
Limited advice that focuses primarily on cutting calories and fat will certainly have an effect on our overall weight. But, we might not live long enough to enjoy our new physique! When we make toxic and deficient choices we move away from health... skinny or not. This type of inaccurate thinking will result in many of us dying skinny!
So, what should we be focusing on when it comes to ideal nutrition? It's not as difficult as you may think. The "4 Golden Rules of Nutrition" teach us basically everything we need about what's healthy, what we were meant to eat, and foods that promote an ideal body weight and composition.
1) Eat "Real" food.
2) Eat whole foods. Foods as close to their naturally occurring state as possible.
3) Eat fresh, local, seasonal foods.
4) Eat food that is as clean and pure as possible. (e.g. organic)
If this is the way you eat the vast majority of the time, you'll find yourself reading labels a lot less! These four guidelines for choosing healthy foods far surpass the importance of caloric content, fat, sodium, glycemic index, etc. That is, if real health is a concern of yours!
The examples of the kind of dangerously skewed thinking and advice I've been referring to are countless. A couple that I've seen recently are:
A popular trainer and nutritional "expert" telling his online followers to use Splenda and other "low calorie/low glycemic index" artificial sweeteners in their post-workout oatmeal. In fact, when one disciple admitted that she was out of Splenda and used local, raw, organic honey instead, he told her to make sure she used Splenda from now on. Yikes! Very dangerous advice.
Why dangerous? Splenda is a known toxin. Artificial sweeteners are neurotoxins - toxic to the brain and nervous system. Raw, local honey is loaded with health benefits. Grains, such as oatmeal, are considered toxic by numerous leading health experts due to their direct influence on our delicate insulin balance and our levels of inflammation - two of the five known pillars of chronic illness.
In a recent interview with mega star Beyonce, she was asked about her fitness and nutrition regime. She stated that she maintains a "very strict diet". She described how she starts her day with granola or Special K (scary start), has a morning snack of fruit or veggies (good), a salad with healthy fats and protein like avocado, chicken and oil and vinegar, as well as some chopped veggies (great), has an afternoon snack of some "100-calorie food, like crackers or Oreos" (horrible!), dinner of fish and veggies (great) and a late night dessert of "Soy Dream ice cream sandwiches".
Grains are a dangerous way to start the day. Protein, along with its naturally occurring fats, and some fresh fiber is an excellent way to fuel your body. Those 100-calorie snacks are enough to send me through the roof! What a horrible message to send, that it's OK to eat these snacks loaded with high fructose corn syrup, artificial everything and lacking any nutritional value whatsoever... all because they're low calorie? Frightening. Finally, modern-day soy foods are some of the most dangerous on our planet. Tucked in between two fake, toxic, high fructose syrup-loaded cookies is certainly not healthy.
Now, let me just say that Beyonce rocks! The girl is seriously gorgeous, talented and powerful. That's what makes this message even more upsetting - thousands of people will consider the source and choose to follow in the hopes they'll all end up looking like Beyonce!
Of course, there are countless examples like this in celebrity-ville! My intention certainly isn't to pick on Beyonce... just the message being sent. She does many things right, when it comes to her nutrition. But it's obvious from this interview that one of her main focuses is on fitting into small dress sizes. She doesn't mention her health and wellness in the interview.
There's a reason we have chronic illnesses like cancer, diabetes, heart disease, obesity, arthritis, depression, infertility, Alzheimer's, sleep disorders, chronic fatigue, chronic pain, digestive and intestinal disorders, and so on, increasing at astronomical rates. We're not focusing on health. We're focusing on what we look like on the outside or on the short-term pleasure and convenience of the toxic food.
If we were to shift our focus when choosing and analyzing foods to meeting our body's genetic nutritional requirements, we'd be pleasantly surprised by the outward improvements in our bodies in addition to the obvious internal, life-saving ones. When you give your body what it needs and avoid what it doesn't need, it rewards you with some fabulous outward benefits!
Before reading any label, consider: Is this "real" food? Is it as close to its naturally occurring state as possible? Is it fresh? Is it as clean as possible?
This is the pathway to a long life AND your skinny jeans!
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