{"id":192,"date":"2015-10-03T19:09:16","date_gmt":"2015-10-03T19:09:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.frot.co.nz\/design\/dietnet\/basics\/whole_foods\/"},"modified":"2016-06-22T16:22:12","modified_gmt":"2016-06-22T04:22:12","slug":"whole_foods","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/www.frot.co.nz\/design\/dietnet\/foods\/whole_foods\/","title":{"rendered":"Whole Foods"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Prior to the modernisation of food processing, there was no need for a special whole food eating plan. Foods that are organic, fresh and unprocessed contain the nutrients needed to digest and absorb that food in a balanced form.<\/p>\n

With the advent of methods of processing, ways of transporting food long distances, chemical fertilisers, and the predominance of convenience foods, our food lost a lot of its nutritional value. It became contaminated with substances that our bodies couldn’t cope with. The nutrients needed to digest the foods weren’t present and had to be robbed from our bodies’ stores. The result was a massive decline in health.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> <\/a>In the 1920’s & 30’s a dental surgeon called Weston Price traveled the world studying the teeth of “primitive” populations in many different areas. What he found was very disturbing. Those who followed their traditional (whole food) eating patterns, had excellent teeth and excellent general health. Those who changed to a “western” diet of processed foods developed marked dental deformities within two generations. Their general health also deteriorated and chronic illnesses started to become more prevalent. His book Nutrition & Physical Degeneration<\/b><\/a> records his findings.<\/p>\n

Since the 1930’s, the quality of our food has deteriorated even further. It is no wonder that diseases like cancer, arthritis, heart disease, asthma, back pain, & chronic fatigue (to mention just a few) now have such a high incidence. To turn around this tide of ill-health\u00a0 would require a massive effort, both at a personal and global level. The powers-that-be are not going to do anything to help you, so you need to do it yourself.<\/p>\n

The problem is, refined foods are so abundant that it takes some effort to find and prepare whole foods. Nearly everything in a packet or can contains some refined carbs or dangerously processed fats. The last few years have seen a resurgence of people who are concerned enough about their health to make the effort required to find fresh, organic meat and produce. Just take a walk through Commonsense Organics in Wellington any time of the day to see what I mean. The time to join them is now.<\/p>\n

If you’re still not convinced it’s necessary,\u00a0 you’ve probably heard of Leslie Kenton – a well known advocate of natural foods, especially raw. For her views on why we need to eat fresh, unprocessed foods, see my notes<\/a> from a talk she gave in Wellington in\u00a0 the mid 90’s.<\/i><\/p>\n

If your health is very poor, you may then need to go one step further and do an elimination diet<\/a> to identify food allergies. Or you may need to eat according to your correct metabolic type<\/a>. But for now, let’s start with the basics – a diet that is predominantly based on whole, natural foods. How do you go about cooking whole foods? Where do you go to find helpful information? Thankfully, there are resources out there.<\/p>\n

\nA wonderful book to help you learn how to cook natural foods is “Nourishing Traditions”<\/b><\/a> by Sally Fallon and Mary Enig. This is a book which explains why much of the current dietary information is wrong. You may be surprised by some of it. For example, saturated fats are not the health risk, processed vegetable fats are. And that 6-8 servings of grains & cereals the food pyramid recommends? Make sure they are whole grains, cooked correctly – processed cereals are bad for you. It could be considered a companion work to “Nutrition & Physical Degeneration”<\/a> <\/b> – one that explains how to go about preparing food in the traditional ways. It contains background information on whole food nutrition, explains how to prepare food to make them more digestible, has a host of interesting recipes, and contains lots of additional nutritional information. If you can only afford one book on nutrition, this is the one I would recommend.<\/p>\n

The Weston A Price Foundation website at www.westonaprice.org<\/a> has useful guidelines and articles, including some by Sally Fallon and Mary Enig. Check out their guide to healthy foods<\/a>. Also of interest is this article<\/a> on natural diets for your pets.<\/p>\n

Dr Mercola also has a comprehensive eating plan based on whole and raw foods. Check it out here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Not everybody has the same guidelines, so I have combined some of them here. Don’t be daunted by this list. You don’t have to be perfect all the time. But the more you can incorporate good choices into your diet, the better results you will get. To help you find the good stuff, WAPF members around the world have been preparing shopping guides to help you.<\/p>\n