8 REASONS TO SUPPLEMENT
Everything we eat has nutrients!
Nutrients are critical for brain and nerve function, for a sound circulatory system, and for a strong heart and bones. These nutrients are provided by the products we consume, which come from plants and animals that eat plants. But it turns out that our diets could be lacking essential components to a healthy, balanced body for more than a few reasons, even if we think our food is nutritious enough!
1. MODERN COMMERCIAL AGRICULTURE TECHNIQUES LEAVE SOIL DEFICIENT IN IMPORTANT NUTRIENTS
This causes the food grown in the soil to share the same mineral deficiencies!
When plants are repeatedly grown on the same land, the soil loses nutrients faster than they can be replaced - as cultivation continues, the plants have fewer nutrients to grow and less for you to consume! Also, most modern fruits and vegetables are farmed in a way that amplifies sugar content and "improves" physical appearance, not nutritional value. As a result, common produce is artificially high in fructose and lower in key nutrients.
2. MANY FOODS ARE SHIPPED LONG DISTANCES AND ARE STORED FOR LONG PERIODS OF TIME
Both of these factors cause depletion of nutrients present in food.
We import produce more than ever, which allows us to try some pretty exotic flavor profiles, and these items are shipped from all over the world in refrigerated containers (often using gases to prevent over-ripening of fruits and vegetables). It can take as long as six months before a product reaches the shelves of your grocery store!
3. FOOD PROCESSING, COOKING, AND PRESERVING LEADS TO NUTRIENT DEPLETION
It can be difficult to obtain adequate nutrition from foods alone. Common food preparation processes reduce the amount of nutrients in food.
In particular, processes that expose foods to high levels of heat, light, and/or oxygen cause the greatest nutrient loss. Nutrients can also be "washed out" of foods by fluids that are introduced during a cooking process. However, cooking can also be beneficial, because it kills potentially harmful microorganisms that can be present in some foods.
4. INCONSISTENT EATING HABITS, INSUFFICIENT CHEWING OF FOOD, EATING ON THE RUN, AND STRESS CONTRIBUTE TO POOR DIGESTION
Therefore, our bodies can have a hard time extracting all the nutrients needed from food.
Saliva contains digestive enzymes, so the longer you chew, the more time these enzymes have to start breaking down your food, making digestion easier on your stomach and small intestine. Enzymes that break down fat make some nutrients more available for absorption - especially from uncooked fruits and vegetables. Chewing also increases the amount of fat that is absorbed from foods that contain both fat and fiber, while stomach acid starts to break down food proteins into smaller, more digestible molecules.
The physiologic stress response is your body’s survival mechanism. When you are anxious, your body is not concerned with digesting food. Instead, it will focus all of its energy on the problem at hand. Depending on the severity of stress, this may cause your digestion to completely shut off, leaving the food (and nutrients) in your gut un-metabolized.
5. CERTAIN LIFE EVENTS AND HEALTH CONDITIONS MAY RESULT IN INCREASED NEED OF CERTAIN NUTRIENTS
For example, pregnancy and menopause (or other aging factors) increase the body's need for certain vital nutrients.
The tissues of your endocrine system, made up of several glands throughout your body, release hormones into your bloodstream - these hormones help regulate your metabolism, control reproduction, maintain your internal clock, and control your blood pressure and heart rate. Proper nutrition helps maintain a healthy endocrine system, with specific nutrients playing key roles in regulating your hormone balance.
6. MANY NUTRIENTS HAVE BEEN PROVEN TO PREVENT OR AID IN THE TREATMENT OF CHRONIC HEALTH CONDITIONS
These health conditions may include high cholesterol, arthritis, birth defects, and cancer.
Poor nutrition is one of the four modifiable health risk behaviors responsible for chronic disease development and severity. For instance, because 80% of the immune system is contained in the gastrointestinal system, a person's issues with immunity could be related to faulty digestion.
7. PHARMACEUTICAL DRUG USE HAS ESCALATED OVER TIME
Most medications deplete essential nutrients, making people more vulnerable to deficiencies.
Whether you occasionally take a pharmaceutical like an antibiotic, or count on an extended-use drug such as a cholesterol lowering prescription, your need for specific nutrients increases. Many prescriptions, as well as commonly used over-the-counter drugs, cause potentially serious nutrient depletions. In other cases, medications may interfere with natural processes needed to produce nutrients.
8. MANY FRUITS AND VEGETABLES ARE GENETICALLY BRED TO IMPROVE VISUAL APPEAL AND CROP YIELDS (NOT NUTRITIONAL VALUE)
This factor frequently results in lesser nutritional values than our ancestors’ food supply.
Non-organic, pesticide-treated vegetables are lower in nuritional properties than organic ones. This is because the plant produces chemicals as a defense against bugs and pathogens. When there is no reason to defend themselves due to artificial repellents, the plant stops producing chemicals that your body and brain benefit from!
A nutritious diet requires thought and planning. Eating regular, healthy meals and light snacks throughout the day will give your body the steady supply of nutrients it needs to stay active (and keep you on track with the 30-day calendar program)!
If you're struggling to lose weight despite working out frequently, it's because something is off - that something is probably your diet! Making conscious food choices takes practice, but once you realize how good it feels to provide the body with the right kind of nutrition, you'll understand why I always emphasize that food is essential for fitness! My Nutrition Plan gives you the tools you need to make a habit out of healthy choices!
The transformations that people have experienced while participating in my Nutrition Program are evidence that you too can achieve those body goals if you're willing to work for results and be nutrition-minded!
The post Are You Missing Key Nutrients? appeared first on Rebecca Louise.
