Health & Well-Being

Ever thought of planting your own tomatoes?

We have to become more aware of the amount of food we are taking in on a daily basis. Where did it come from and what is in it?

Most of the processed food is high in calories and sugar which strongly contributes to weight gain. Therefore it is necessary to change the way we eat but we should do it in a measurable way. I am sure you have heard many times that eating more fruits and vegetables are healthy.

Giving advice to someone to eat more vegetables and fruits should be based on the eating habits of the individual. If the person is already eating enough, eating more make the individual sick. Too much is never good.

Eating healthy means eating fruits and vegetables in a balanced way. And knowing when to eat certain greens. Today we should pay attention to the quality of the food we are consuming. We should pay extra attention to fruits that look too pretty. There is a probability that if they look pretty, there may be chemicals involved.

You should also be aware of sliced or cut veggies that they sell in packages. Pay attention to the nutrition information and look for the companies profile online. For the veggies and fruits that are cut at the grocery store, it’s up to you to check if the store complies with hygiene procedure. They usually receive certification when the pass yearly controls. This is where you can apply your experience, if you are used to planting, cultivate and cut your own greens at home.

People don’t realize it but when you are more aware of the environment and the importance to conserve it, you will slowly find out the value of our beautiful eco-systems and the gifts we receive from them. We are busy producing processed food when we easily received food from nature to consume. Don’t know what I’m talking about?

The sweetness comes with a price…

For example, let’s say you don’t like to drink your tea plain and wish for something sweet. what do you do? You add some cups of sugar or artificial sweetener to it, right? Some people argue that using sweetener is the best option but they are wrong. Even though they may not have the sugar element in them some studies have shown that switching to artificial sweeteners may prevent weight gain, or aid weight loss, other studies have suggested the opposite.

So far as we know, there are five dangerous sugar substitutes that are approved for consumer use: saccharin, neotame, acesulfame potassium, aspartame, and sucralose. We usually find these in diet or sugar-free drinks and food. Sucralose and aspartame are the most pervasive and dangerous substitutes found in products on store shelves today.

For the consumer, what we know is that people who routinely use artificial sweeteners may start to find natural sweet foods, such as fruit, less appealing and unsweet foods, such as vegetables uneatable. So the use of artificial sweeteners can make you ignore healthy, filling, and highly nutritious foods while consuming more artificially flavored foods with less nutritional value.

Suddenly natural sugar doesn’t seem so bad anymore. Fruits are highly nutritious, nutrient-dense, high in fiber, and low in glycemic load and don’t forget honey. On the other hand, refined, concentrated sugar consumed in large amounts (2 to 5 cups) rapidly increases blood glucose and insulin levels, increases triglycerides, inflammatory mediators and oxygen radicals, and with them, the risk for diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and other chronic illnesses.

Nature is already giving you the sweetness you need like honey. And again just to make it clear, here I am talking about natural honey, you can buy in bottles, not the processed honey that comes in packages.

Healthy is Sexy…

I have much respect for vegetarians. I know some people who make fun of them but they are actually an inspiration to follow by eating more greens.

I’m not saying we should all become vegetarians but we must realize the importance of eating more fruits and veggies and the impact it has on our health. There is a strong correlation between eating healthy and looking good, radiant even.

By eating well, you will slowly improve your skin but if you are using too many chemicals on your skin you will not notice the difference. Instead, try using products based on natural ingredients. You can even use the greens directly by creating facial masks for example. Those have been used already for many generations.

Health and Beauty

There is not only one way of having great skin using natural products. Nature teaches us the beauty of growth yet we have never realized its value. we have become self-absorbed and obsessed with what others think of us. We dress up and act for other people. Sound familiar?

We are surgically changing our appearance because of the beauty standards other people have set. I know there are some cases where it is necessary because of health issues, in those cases, it’s done for the benefit of the person’s health. But 95% of the time it is done to please others and improve our image in their view.

It is time we redefine the standards of beauty and acknowledge that not eating enough, drinking too much, taking drugs is not healthy and it will affect your appearance and your lifespan. I am sure all of us would like to live enough to see our grandchildren and great-grandchildren running around. When you are taking care of yourself by eating well, exercising and accepting yourself as you are, you look good, beautiful because being healthy is sexy.