Getting Processed Foods Out Of "your tank"

I want to start this blog off on a little bit of a serious note before we get to all the fun posts on recipes and fitness that I know you will all love!

It is important for us as individuals to be aware and from time to time reflect on the impact society has on us.  Let’s take a step back and look at some statistics:

1.   2/3 of Americans are now either overweight or obese. If trends continue at the current rate, 100% of Americans will be overweight or obese by the year 2048

2.   Type 2 Diabetes (caused by lifestyle factors and genetics) accounts for 90% of all Diabetes worldwide. Total deaths from Diabetes are projected to rise by more than 50% in the next 10 years.

3.   Over $10 billion per year is spent on direct marketing to children. Less than 5% of that number is spent advertising fruits and vegetables.

4.   Healthiness of the food we eat decreases by 1.7% for every hour that passes in the day.

5.   In a recent study, 52% of Americans (that were polled) believed doing their taxes was easier than figuring out how to eat healthy. 

(*statistics from the World Health Organization, Center for Science in the World Health Interest and foodinsight.org) 

We see statistics like these all the time and tend to overlook them because they are not a direct reflection of us individually. But the truth is, these facts show that the majority of what we are eating is making us sick and unhealthy! We need to take control of our bodies and find the root of the problem. Easier said than done? Nope, just easy! The problem is that industry has come to thrive on cheap and easy to acquire processed and packaged foods, and it has become the staple of the American diet.

Processed foods are, plus or minus, 70 % of what most of us eat. We are ADDICTED to the chemicals in these foods and having them on our weekly grocery lists has become “the norm”. We go through our daily lives like robots, programed to buy these foods that we “believe” are okay to eat. After all, why would corporations sell us foods that are unhealthy? And if everyone else is eating it then it has to be okay.

The United States Department of Agriculture is responsible for American food policy and since its creation has been conflicted with how to protect public health and protect big industries at the same time. In recent years, the USDA has advised that vegetables and fruits become a larger part of the diet. With an annual budget of $2.4 trillion, the federal government spends exactly ZERO dollars promoting the food pyramid. So guess who is left for advertising? Yep, you guessed it! All the big corporations- McDonalds, Burger King, Taco Bell, ect. What we see all around us is the promotion of fast food and it is poisoning our minds into thinking this is okay!!

The bottom line is this: if we want to be healthy we need to eat food that is full of nutrients, not chemical additives and unhealthy fats. If you put water in your car, the gas tank might be say full but the car will not be able to run because what it really needs is oil. Similarly, we can fill up our bodies with sugar and chemicals and might be full at the moment, but at the end of the day, what our “gas tanks” really need to run properly are nutrients! And where do we get these nutrients? From natural REAL foods!!! Vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, beans and grains are the cure to all evils! So decide to go against what magazines and the media say and listen and trust your body. Let’s nourish our bodies from the inside out and fill our tanks with the ingredients to make us stronger, healthier, more energized and be able to feel our best!

This post was meant to show you the extreme of what is going on. Know that of course we are going to eat packaged foods from time to time but being aware of what we put in our bodies and limiting the toxic products is the most important take away message here!

I hope everyone has a healthy & happy relaxing Sunday night and be sure to check back tomorrow morning for a post on making healthy a lifestyle and not just another "diet"!