OK, so apart from having a busy few weeks with company in and out of the house, I have also been working on a little something for the faint of heart. Those of you who are a bit scared of adopting on a new nutritional outlook and even more terrified about putting one into practice, I have made a quick reference guide for what to eat and what not to eat. Please read it :) and please try it. Email me your success stories and any questions you may have. Happy Reading!
What to Eat. What Not to Eat.
Most people do not realize the importance of proper nutrition. In a world riddled with industrial food products, we are all suffering with industrial food related diseases and conditions which threaten our health and our looks. Diabetes type 2, Heart problems, depression, obesity, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, thyroid problems, osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis, high mortality rates from influenza, lingering common colds, tooth decay, IBS, skin conditions such as eczema and dandruff, mental illness conditions and brain function problems, such as ADHD, ADD, Aspergers syndrome, Alzheimer's, ...the list of degenerative diseases and minor inconvenient common conditions all related to poor nutrition is unbelievable and undeniable.
I have written this for a quick guideline and reference for people interested in getting the basic information on changing their health through nutrition. Any good doctor will tell you, food is the best medicine! This is not meant to be a comprehensive list of good foods or bad foods. Anyone can benefit from the nutritional information I have gathered from extensive self education, research, personal experimentation and application. However, my disclaimer is that personal adjustments based on likes and dislikes and nutritional needs based on your current health will be needed for optimum results and safety. For you and your family's health, please read on.
What to Eat
Celtic Sea Salt
(the only salt you should use. Ever!)
Naturally harvested and dried it contains naturally occurring iodine, selenium, electrolytes, potassium, calcium and magnesium to name a few. It stimulates gastric juices and makes Hydrochloric acid. Wars were fought over this stuff it was so important.
Un-Refined Coconut oil
High in Omega 3 (which people who eat things like sugar and white flour and other processed foods are low in due to the high amounts of Omega 6. Ratio of Omega 3 to 6 should be 1:1 but most people have a ratio of 1:8 and over) Omega 3's allow your body to metabolize fats efficiently for immediate energy and bodily function use instead of storage (i.e. on your butt). Regulate brain chemistry (people low in Omega3 usually have chronic depression)
Cold Pressed Extra Virgin Olive Oil
This is the first pressed unheated oil from the olive. Full of nutrients and flavor.
Real Butter
Organic Pasture Fed Raw Butter is best but Organic Pasteurized will do especially if you are cooking with it. Raw butter is full of enzymes and beneficial bacteria that are important for proper nutrient utilization and digestion. People who are lactose intolerant can have raw dairy because the naturally occurring enzymes are present to aid digestion of the lactose. Tons of vitamins and minerals – also a great source of Omega 3.
Raw Honey (local is best)
Stevia is a plant based sweetener and is good
Pure Maple Syrup is acceptable
Agave Nectar is ok
Un-heated raw honey is full of good enzymes and beneficial bacteria. When it is local it can also help control allergies. All of these can be used in place of sugar for cooking you just have to adjust to taste.
Animal Fats that have not been refined (Lard is sometimes hydrogenated so read the package)
All animal fats are good. Yes even bacon fat! Eat your chicken with the skin on since the fat is stored just under the skin. Animal fat is needed to metabolize the animal protein it is attached to. It aids in mineral and vitamin absorption and important in the digestive tract. Animal fat is not to culprit of obesity. Animal fats are important to have with veggies (i.e. dishes like cabbage usually are cooked with bacon etc) this is important again for the vegetable's mineral and vitamin utilization. With out these good fats your body cannot do much with the good veggies! This is the same for Butter.
Herbs and Spices
Any and all are great as long as there are no MSG's (known to cause severe to mild allergic reactions as well as disrupts neurotransmitter function in the brain)
Whole Milk, Whole Cream, Whole Yogurt, Cheese, Sour Cream etc.
Raw, Pasture fed cow or goat milk is best. Organic pasteurized will do. Never buy ultra pasteurized or homogenized! Too processed. Not to mention Homogenization changes the molecular structure of the fat in milk, thus changes how your body deals with the fat, just as in hydrogenated oil. Raw milk is better due to the beneficial enzymes that have not been killed due to pasteurization. These enzymes aid in lactose digestion and promote healthy gut flora. The vitamins and minerals in pasture fed cow products are twice as nutrient dense than in feed lot cows which are usually just fed corn and hay. Remember: You are what you eat eats too!
Any and All Good Meat and animal organs like liver etc.
Pasture is best, Organic is good and Natural is a sham :) (especially when it comes to pork and chicken). Rare is best. If you like all your meat cooked be sure to have something raw with it like a salad with extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) dressing. Cooking destroys all the enzymes in the meat and enzymes are necessary for proper digestion as well as mineral and vitamin absorption. If the meat is lean you must add auxiliary fat like butter or EVOO to it for the proper utilization of the protein.
Fish and Shellfish including Naturally Smoked Fish and Preserved Fish.
Wild Caught Salmon is best, highest in Omega 3's. Fish should be eaten 3 times a week. Avoid tuna, shark and swordfish as mercury is a real threat and bioaccumulates in predatory fish such as these. Canned salmon is ok but fresh or frozen have twice as many nutrients, so go fresh if you can. All seafoods are good and mollusks are great because they are eaten with all the organs which are the healthiest part. Caviar is fantastic and the best source of sea life nutrients. Most wild caught fish are good choices. Brain Food! Should be eaten 3 times a week.
Eggs
Pasture chickens produce the best, free range organic are good, battery hens need to be avoided. Tons of Omega 3, cholesterol (which contrary to popular belief is actually vitally important) vitamin e and good fat to name a few. It may possibly be the perfect food.
Dried Legumes and Nuts
When properly prepared a good source of protein as long as you add some animal fat in the case of beans. Full of vitamins and minerals! Beans should be eaten at least once a week. Nuts are great sprouted on salads and are good sprouted and roasted as snacks, but in moderation.
Fruits and Veggies Fresh, Frozen or Traditionally Pickled
All fruits and veggies are necessary for a healthy body. Organic is best. Spinach, although popular in salads, should be sauteed or lightly steamed before eating, although having some raw occasionally is fine. Carrots, also very popular raw, are better assimilated when steamed or juiced. With all fruits and veggies fat is necessary for proper digestion and assimilation. With the exception of say avocados and raw coconut milk among the few, most fruits and veggies do not come with a fat so you need to add your own. This is why strawberries and cream, Cheese and Grapes and buttered broccoli, etc are typically paired together.
Brown Rice, Wild Rice, Oats and other Cereal Grains
These are a great source of vitamins and minerals. They should be soaked overnight in water with lemon juice or whey to remove the starch. This will also start the digestion process and activate many nutrients.
Home-Made Chicken and Beef Stock
Apart from being indispensable in any good cooks kitchen, when made properly, a good stock will contain gelatine and bone marrow. These are essential for proper absorption of all the nutrients in the stock and the marrow is a powerhouse of vitamins and minerals. Liquid Gold or as the Jewish say Penicillin (since it has antibiotic properties and immunity boosting nutrients)
What Not to Eat
Iodized table salt (the usual stuff) and “sea salt”
usually an industrial waste product, it is highly processed and additives like anti caking agents, dextrose (which turns it purple then must be bleached) and synthetic iodine to mimic what is naturally found in celtic sea salt are then added. It is horrible for your body and imbalances cell fluids which will cause fluid retention and eventual dehydration.
Any Hydrogenated Vegetable or Seed oils
Hydrogenated oils are high in Omega 6 which cause imbalances in fat metabolization. Weight gain, depression and mild mental retardation are just a few of the numerous side effects of over consumption of hydrogenated oils. They are also carcinogenic when heated to high temperatures for frying. Hydrogenated oils are bad for your body and should always be avoided! The fastest way to loose excess weight is to stop eating anything cooked with these oils.
Margarine
This is a hydrogenated oil product. See above.
Anything Soy, Soy Milk, Soy Cheese, Soy Dogs etc (unless it is fermented like miso soup or soy sauce) this includes protein isolates and MSG which can be made from soy and is often called “natural flavorings” on ingredient labels. Just another reason not to buy processed foods.
Unfermented soy products have chemicals in them that the human body treats as estrogen called estrogen mimics. Soy infant formula has been attributed to lower IQs, failure to thrive, emotional issues, behavioral issues and ADHD. The rate of men having breast reductions has risen as rapidly and the soy fad! It is not a health food. Don't eat it.
Refined Sugars this includes but is not limited to: White sugar, brown sugar, cane sugar, corn syrup, fake maple syrup etc. and any Fake Sugar Substitutes like Saccharin and Aspartame (the latter is linked to depression and all are linked to weight gain).
All of them are anti-nutrients. Which means they actually take vitamins and minerals from your body in order to process them, they are all just empty, chemical laden calories that rob your body, mind and teeth of important vitamins and minerals. The consumption of these refined sugars can and usually lead to rampant dental decay due to calcium and phosphorous depletion, mild to severe emotional issues, mental and attention problems and the usual ADHD, ADD...the list continues. Refined sugar is in everything pre-made (processed) even beef jerky, so read the ingredient labels!
Skim Milk, 2% Milk, Powdered Milk and Products Containing it
Skim Milk and 2% Milk have had the fat content removed for the "fat" conscious consumers. However, fat is in milk to aid in the digestion and the absorption of the milk's nutrients. So if you remove the fat, you remove an important component that helps make milk nutritious. So drink Whole! Apart for being nutritionally inferior in every way, the altered cholesterol in powdered milk is unusable in the body and accumulates as toxic waste that is stored in fat, specially around the midsection (spare tire) and in the arteries.
Egg substitutes and powdered egg
Just as in Milk, egg yolks are the fat that aids in absorption of the nutrients. However, it is even less hygienic since the eggs used for these products are the cracked ones that could not be sold. Hummm.
Artificial Anything. Anything Synthetic. Anything Highly Processed and Pre Made (i.e. convenience foods)
Anything that has been moleculelerily restructured or lab created should never pass your lips. This includes but is not limited to food colorings, artificial flavors, nitrates, preservatives and anything in the What Not to Eat list. Your body cannot process most of these and are treated as poison in your body. Over consumption of processed foods results in subtle, long term accumulative conditions as we have discussed, as well as the usual problems that eventually lead to death.
White Rice and Boxed Cereals
If you could take something nutritious and wholesome, a powerhouse of vitamins, minerals, fiber and calories and strip away all the nutrients, then bleach it, what would you have? White rice. An industrial phenomena! It does not go rancid easily and the pests will not eat it so it is easily transported. Once thought to be the saviour of the starving world, we are starting to realize that it is just killing them slowly. White rice is devoid of all nutrients so your body borrows nutrients from your bones and brain to process it. There is nothing good about white rice. It kills through malnourishment.
This list could continue but one basic principle applies, no processed foods!
More Useful Information and Summary:
Most people understand that a poor diet makes you tired and overweight but few realize that our brains need good nutrition just as much (if not more) than our bodies do. With out our brains our organs do not function. The human brain is 60 percent fat and far too many people have replaced good fats with synthetic fats (which are killing us and lowering our IQ's) or they try to remove fat from their diets altogether. So eat enough good fat. This is in real butter, whole milk, yogurt, cheeses and all animal fats. Coconut oil, extra virgin olive oil, flax seed oil and cod liver oil are some others among the list of good fats. All good fats will be minimally processed and not hydrogenated! Cold or expeller pressed are the choice seed fat oils with the most nutrients. Raw milk, cream and yogurt are best but hard to find, so organic pasteurized dairy products will do. Never consume anything homogenized and read ingredient labels not the nutrition facts. Raw cheese is easy to find in most stores, but there should never be any vegetable oil or emulsifiers in cheese. Brie is usually raw as are most blue cheeses and raw cheddar is now readily available.
Some people who live on foods that are highly processed may experience some withdrawal symptoms when it comes to bread and sugar. Personally I didn't have any, but my mother experienced a few days of feeling "off" while her body was ridding itself of toxins. So if you stop eating sugar and flour (and I hope for your health you do) do not despair, you will feel better once these “drugs” are out of your system.
Animal meats and eggs are an important source of protein, fats and other nutrients that cannot be properly absorbed from other food or are just entirely lacking. Soy should not be eaten as a source of complete protein to replace meat products. Legumes and nuts, although good to eat when prepared properly, fall short as complete proteins as well. For optimal nutrition meat is a must. Lean meat, like chicken breast without the skin, is popular since fat has fallen from our graces, however, the human body needs fat to assimilate the protein and nutrients from the meat, otherwise there is very little nutritional value for your body in lean protein. The same applies for eggs. With out the yolk, the egg whites are not properly utilized in the body. So, eat the whole egg.
Raw fresh fruits and veggies are an important part of the diet. However most people eat too many cooked vegetables which kills enzymes. Enzymes are an important factor to health that many people ignore. They are in charge of rendering all nutrients from our foods through digestion and then they carry the nutrients to where our body needs them. Many people eat 90% cooked or industry manipulated foods, which rarely, if ever, have any live enzymes. Enzymes are killed at 104 degrees. So a good rule is, if you cannot touch your food because it is too hot, the enzymes are dead. Your pancreas makes its own enzymes, however this is hard to do and always results in deficiencies elsewhere in the body. Enzymes come with the food we eat but only in its raw state. A good rule for consuming enough natural enzymes is to have a salad with EVOO dressing before your meal or a piece of fruit, even handful of grapes will do! The enzymes will start the digestion process when your main cooked veggies and meat arrive in your stomach for processing. Sauerkraut and Kimchee are also great sources of enzymes so if you like these "pickle type" condiments eat them with your meal. Just make sure there are no preservatives or dyes in them. Personally, I have a 50/50 diet, which means I aim for 50% raw food on a daily basis. Half of my plate is cooked and the other half is raw. Not only is it nutritionally sound, but you would not believe how much better making a small change like this will make you feel.
A quick note on juices. All prepackaged juices are not worth the money. The nutrients in juices degrade with exposed to air (oxidization) after juicing. This is why many juices are fortified with synthetic vitamins. Also many juices are pasteurized to prevent bacterial growth. Great right? But pasteurization kills all the enzymes and also denatures the vitamins, so what's the point of drinking it. If you like juice, which is great, juice your fruit and veggies yourself and drink them as soon as your done juicing. you should never have more juice than one piece of fruit will produce. An orange for instance will produce about 2oz of fresh juice and that is all you really need. You wouldn't eat 5 oranges in one sitting, so why drink five? Juicing is a great way to start any meal! And remember, all you need is 2oz.
Canned goods should not have a place in the home with the exception of some fish (never tuna) and tomato products. Canned goods are often heated to high temperatures which destroy almost all the nutrients and are usually laden with industrial salt. So Always buy fresh, frozen or fermented!
Nuts, legumes and seeds should be sprouted before eating. Sprouting deactivates the growth inhibitors which are toxic to our bodies and allows for the release of the nutrients that are bound in them. Sprouted seeds, eaten raw, just after sprouting are best because they have all the nutrients and enzymes. Roasted sprouted seeds are next best but the enzymes are killed. Lastly raw nuts are ok but in small quantities due to the toxic growth inhibitors. A note on raw almonds: By law all almonds grown, shelled and packaged in the US are pasteurized so these will not sprout. If you like almonds buy them from the ethnic stores since they are not required to be pasteurized and sprout them.
As with nuts and legumes, whole wheat should be sprouted before being used in breads and pastas to make it more nutritionally complete. Otherwise you can ferment whole wheat flour by soaking it in lemon water overnight to allow the enzymes in the lemon juice to break down the gluten. Our bodies are unable to digest gluten properly which is why store bought bread (with the exception of sour dough bread) is responsible for gluten allergies and IBS. Only eat properly prepared whole wheat bread and whole wheat products. No white bread! Since bread is unfortunately a staple of the American diet it, is important to choose wisely. All refined flour (yes even whole wheat that hasn't been ground in the past 48 hours) is devoid of almost all nutrients and should be considered a treat, not a staple as the FDA would have us to believe. Proper whole grains are good for us but for most busy people, too time consuming to make, so treat any bought bread just as that, a treat!
Oats, Brown or Wild Rice and other cereal grains must be fermented in order for our bodies to utilize the vitamins and nutrients. As mentioned before, white rice should never have a place in your kitchen! It is devoid of all nutrients and has been bleached! Soaking your rice and oats overnight in some lemon water will release nutrients and break down difficult to digest starches and gluten.
Supplements: A good Cod-Liver Oil Supplement and Flax Seed Oil Supplement, in a gelatin capsule are a wise choice. Vegetarian capsules are made with plant cellulose which is indigestible, not to mention gelatin aids in the absorption of vitamins and minerals, so buy gelatin capsuled supplements. These supplements will balance out the Omega Ratio in our bodies which help with weight maintenance, depression and brain function.
It also notes mentioning everything Organic is best. No need for extra toxic chemicals in our bodies. Also properly raised animal meats/products are healthier for our bodies and contain more nutrients than their industrial farmed counter parts. Organic fruits, vegetables, grains, seeds, legumes and nuts also have far more nutrients and less toxic chemicals, so if you can afford the organic than get it. Spend your money on good food or good doctors! You make the choice.
If you follow the sound nutritional advice of removing all processed foods from your diet you will be rewarded with a number of benefits both mental and physical. Apart from feeling great, you will look great and think sharp. Personally, in three months my husband and I shed more than 20lbs of fat each. All our skin conditions are gone, including my eczema and his dandruff. Our bodies are full of beautiful lean muscle and all without exercising! (These Texas summers are too hot to go outside and break a sweat!) Almost all my body is devoid of cellulite, my skin is taunt and I have even lost wrinkles! I look younger and feel younger. I am the healthiest I have ever been in my life and I have enough energy to keep up with my 3 year old son. Most impressively, our son, who was suffering from emotional issues and hyperactivity issues as well as skin conditions, chronic ear infections (which was cured all together with a probiotic and cutting out the sugar) yeast infections, IBS, constipation and had already suffered a broken bone at just 2 years old, just to name a few, we have seen amazing results. Just like most people I didn't attribute any of his conditions to malnourishment. I thought we ate properly. We drank milk, ate our veggies and took vitamins. Then once I took him off sugar (which was the first thing to go) we noticed immediate results and that is what started my obsession for proper nutrition information. I sincerely believe everyone through proper nutrition and unbiased nutrition education can feel as great as we do and will see the results!
For additional information and recipes there are many books you can read but a good starting point is Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon .
Quick Start Shopping List:
Finally, I have added my personal shopping list of things I always make sure I have on hand. I hope this helps you and your family get started!
Celtic Sea Salt
Organic crushed tomatoes in a can
Various Spices and Herbs
Organic tomato paste
Raw Honey
Brown or Wild Rice
Pure Maple Syrup
Quina
Agave Nectar
Whole Wheat Pasta
Stevia Packets
Rolled Oats
Organic Whole Wheat for Baking
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Un-Refined Coconut Oil
Raw Vinegar
Un-Refined Flax Seed Oil
White Wine Vinegar
Real Butter
Sunflower seeds
Real Whole Milk
Cashews
Real Yogurt
Almonds
Real Cheese (Raw)
Organic Coffee
Real Cream
Organic Fruits, Frozen and Fresh
Pasture (Grass fed) Meats
Organic Veggies, Frozen and Fresh
Pasture Fed Eggs
Organic Liver
Cod Liver Oil Supplement
Fish and Seafood Fresh, Frozen and canned
Flax Seed Oil Supplement
Caviar
Natural Smoked Salmon
Organic Dark Chocolate :)
Various Beans (lentils etc)
Bottled Spring Water
Natural Cured Bacon
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