Why are Nutritional Foods so Important?

Have you ever found yourself feeling hungry a short time after you’ve eaten?

A foundation in wholefoods is a basic requirement for good health. Our bodies are designed to process wholefoods, that is, foods that are as close to nature as possible.

For example, eating brown rice has more to offer you than white rice, brown rice still contains its bran, so is slower to digest and breakdown in your digestive system, this means you will feel satisfied for longer, your blood sugar will remain stable, plus in turn your mood will also remain stable.

Wholegrains not only fill you up for longer, but contain higher amounts of nutrients, and of course wholefoods aid in optimum bowel function by bulking up your stools as they contain more fibre. This added bulk to your stool also enables detoxification of excess hormones and a range of other chemicals or toxins your body will reabsorb, unless excreted daily.

A variety of wholefoods are also important to promote a healthy gut-flora, the more diversity of seasonal vegetables, good fats and quality proteins in our diet, the more diverse our microbes are in the gut, this in turn increases our immune function, by providing a barrier against pathogenic organisms with a balance of micro-organisms.

How to introduce a Wholefood Diet:

Switching from a traditional Western Diet of convenience foods containing artificial flavours, sugars, caffeine, alcohol and additives may be difficult for some, so reduce and swap them out, and you will slowly feel the difference, and no longer rely on the caffeine hit or sugary dense foods to get you through the day.

• SWAP sugary treats for fresh fruit or nutrient dense snacks such as peanut butter & celery, hummus, avocado & sour dough. Swap fizzy /energy drinks for filtered water.
• REDUCE coffee consumption by swapping to a non-caffeinated herbal tea.
• TIME give yourself time to prepare & cook, it does require some planning and investment, but your health is worth it.
• COOK bulk meals that can freeze well-soup, curry, bolognaise, braises or stews.
• COOK once eat twice-pack dinner for lunch the next day.
• GET ORGANISED Plan breakfast & lunch the night before if you must leave early for work. Boil 2 eggs, jar up oats & chia seeds with yoghurt, almond milk & cinnamon. Pack a banana, apple, handful nuts & seeds to snack on.
• LEARN invest in some cook books or Google your favourite cuisine for new recipes that incorporate wholefoods, sign up for a cooking class to build confidence in the kitchen, and learn about foods you wouldn’t normally prepare.