Every few days, someone will contact me for advice and guidance regarding their nutrition. For years, I've consistently noticed that many people just don't know where to begin when it comes to eating healthier. Is it any wonder? When I think of all the nutritional information we're inundated with - in the media, in nutrition books, in grocery stores, what our doctors say, what new 'studies' say, what our friends say, what celebrities say - wow! No wonder people are confused and unsure where to begin!
I like to keep it simple.
When I make any health and lifestyle recommendation, whether it's nutrition, exercise, stress, mindset, weight loss, or even dealing with a sickness or disease, my recommendation is based upon meeting our body's innate genetic requirements for health. That's the first step. If it's not something that meets our requirements for health then it's not part of the plan.
Next, I stick to the simplicity of the "Wellness Formula". This is the magic! Applying this one simple strategy to every component of our lifestyle, results in predictable improvements over and over.
The Wellness Formula states that optimal health and function are created as a result of consistently making pure and sufficient lifestyle choices over time, while simultaneously reducing toxic and deficient choices.
"Lifestyle choices" can be summarized as how we eat, how we move and how we think. If something is "pure" it means that it meets our innate genetic requirements in that area of our lifestyle. If it's "toxic" then it works against our requirements and has a negative effect. "Sufficient" choices give us enough of the requirements to meet our needs, while "deficient" choices fail to meet our innate requirements for health.
All these choices play out on a dynamic sliding scale of health. On one end of the scale is optimal health & function. When we make pure and sufficient choices, we move in this direction. When we make toxic and deficient choices we move away from optimal health. At the opposite end of the scale is lack of function and eventually death.
Yes, our external environment plays a direct role in this sliding scale as well as the choices we make. A pure and sufficient environment (the conditions we are consistently exposed to) move us toward health, while a toxic and deficient environment moves us away.
So how do we apply these choices along the scale to Nutrition?
My main focus when first guiding someone to creating better health is to add purity and sufficiency. We add the "good stuff" first. It's more challenging and less successful to begin by taking away the "bad stuff", the toxic and deficient choices.
In order to add purity and sufficiency to the nutritional component of our lifestyle, I have 4 "Golden Rules" that I suggest we stick to as often as possible:
1) Eat real food.
2) Eat food in its whole form, closest to its naturally occurring state.
3) Eat food that is pure, clean and untainted.
4) Eat foods that are fresh, seasonal and local.
Real food is food that is grown, harvested, hunted, etc. as opposed to being created in a factory or laboratory. My kids call it "God-made" food. Real food meets our requirements for sufficiency.
Food in its whole form simply means "don't mess with what nature created!" For example, an egg comes with whites AND a yolk. This is how it's most nutritionally beneficial. Naturally occurring protein has some fat along with it. This is how it's assimilated most effectively for our greatest benefit. When we attempt to remove fat or calories from food, we denature it and lose many of it's inherent benefits. This moves us away from health.
The naturally occurring state for livestock is free-roaming, free-range and eating what they were designed to eat. For example, cows naturally eat grass, not fatty grains. Foods in their naturally occurring state help meet our requirements for sufficiency.
Eating pure and clean foods means, whenever possible, choosing foods without toxic chemicals like pesticides, herbicides, steroids, hormones, antibiotics, radiation and so on. Choosing organic foods makes good health sense when you consider that toxic choices move us away from health on the sliding scale. It doesn't always have to be organic, but the cleaner the better.
Fresh, seasonal and local foods are higher in nutrient density, therefore helping us meet our needs for sufficiency.
To further simplify food choices, I refer to the "Circle of Health". What goes in the circle are the foods we know for certain create health. If it's not in the circle, it doesn't move us toward health.
Inside the Circle of Health are:
1) Protein - meat/poultry, eggs, fish, seafood, nuts & seeds, sprouts, etc.
2) fats & oils - nature-made (butter, coconut oil, olive oil, etc.) vs. synthetic, man made (processed vegetable oils); nuts & seeds
3) vegetables
4) fruit
5) water
and, teetering on the edge of the circle are,
6) grains
7) dairy
Many nutritional experts argue that grains and dairy are not requirements for health since they were not part of our hunter-gatherer ancestors' diets. These ancestors are considered by many to be the "gold standard" of health and performance. Our genetics have remained essentially unchanged since these earliest times, therefore, our genetic requirements should be no different.
Others argue that in their cleanest, purest, most naturally occurring states, these foods are acceptable and perhaps even beneficial. For example, raw, unpasteurized, organic dairy products and organic sprouted whole grains. I believe there are some individual variances to consider.
As far as the other foods in the Circle of Health, remember to follow the Golden Rules: choose whole foods in their naturally occurring state; choose as pure and clean as possible; and select fresh, seasonal and local foods whenever you can.
If you make certain to add these foods to your daily intake first you are proactively meeting your body's needs for health. Plan your meals around these foods as often as you can, or choose snacks that are from within the circle.
Foods outside the circle that do the most damage and move us the furthest from health are the synthetic, man made, factory foods. Some of the most harmful ingredients, regardless of what food industry marketers and lobbyists claim, are high fructose corn syrup, artificial sweeteners and flavors, trans fats, hydrogenated fats/partially hydrogenated fats, refined grains and sugar, and soy.
Stick to the Circle of Health as much as possible. Begin by adding more real foods, whole foods and fresh foods to your day. Then, choose the cleanest foods when you can. When you're ready, you can start to reduce the foods and beverages in your diet that you know are not contributing to your health or moving you directly away from it.
Nutrition doesn't have to be complicated or overwhelming. The Wellness Formula tells us exactly how health is created and how we lose it. Start by adding pure and sufficient food choices each day and enjoy your new levels of health and vitality!
