Patients on occasion will come in and have a very well rounded list of foods and supplements they have maintained over a decent amount of time and yet they are still experiencing health concerns. What is often hidden behind this apparent failure to achieve better health is either the foods or the supplements themselves.
If you find you have made similar efforts and still do not have better health, do not despair. It may require simple adjustments to which foods and supplements you are taking in.
The Foods
Take a free Sunday afternoon and peruse your kitchen and look at all of the ingredients of the foods you are consuming or pull up the nutritional value tables online. What is in your bread? Is
your meat of good quality? Are you consuming fruits and veggies that have been doused with pesticides or other chemicals? Are you making sure to wash them before you eat them? Are the foods themselves of high or low quality?
The cost of high quality food may seem to immediately bring the idea of cost to mind however food rich of nutrition fill you up quicker and manages to satisfy your appetite
for longer periods of time. This means you are buying less low quality food which adds up in cost over time and in poor health and unseen dangerous toxins sitting in the cells of your body.
Replace Replace Replace
The goal is a smooth transition to healthier options without changing the foods you like so much that you are miserable. The best way to do this is to replace what you are consuming now with similar items. Like bread.
There are many breads you can choose from, although some packaging is just really good advertising with no real nutritional value being delivered. While it is easy to tell the cheap store-bought bread it will take reading the labels to find the higher quality breads. Finding low carb breads with low sugar is good. If you can find bread made with Bob's Red Mill flours this is good. If you are ready to let go of bread you can use lettuce in many cases to wrap sandwiches or burgers instead!
A note regarding meats, many pre-sliced meats are filled with preservatives to keep them on the shelves longer this is good for the seller but may be harmful to the consumer. Try replacing these with deli meats that are sliced for you and are fresh. Also you can cook and slice your meats at home. You can get fresh meat from local sources. Find a local farm or a deli that only sells from local farms.
Eat foods for Function
Your body's function! The following foods and supplements will help or possibly improve how your body functions in ways that you can tell by the benefits you gain, including:
Sharpen focus/improve memory and reduced inflammation (by providing it with luteolin).
- celery, sliced peppers, or carrots are excellent sources of luteolin
Boost cognitive function and improves learning and memory (by providing B Vitamins)
-broccoli and cauliflower or eggs
-healthy sources of beef and fish will also give your brain a B12 boost in energy
Improve learning, thinking, and memory (by providing antioxidants and phytochemicals).
-Blueberries
Brain and memory improvement (by providing omega 3’s).
-Walnuts and pumpkin seeds
These nuts and seeds are also high in Vitamin D which is good for the brain and stress and is linked to a stronger immune system.
The foods given so far can only benefit you unless you have a food allergy to them, however the next set of foods are more likely to not only lack benefit but can cause an array of adverse health effects such as brain fog, fatigue, and inflammation.
-Sugary or processed GMO grains
-Dairy products
-Poorly processed meat
These can upset the digestive system. Avoid refined sugar, genetically modified grains, poor quality dairy products and other highly processed foods like poor quality lunch meat.
If you find you have come a long way in making sure you have changed your habits this is a major step to better health and vitality. Contact me if you need a few adjustments to arrive all the way to optimum wellness.
To Your Health!
