The word nutrition has several definitions, but most people take it as a synonym for good (as in healthy) food. This is one meaning; another is the study of how the body uses food for growth, tissue repair and replacement, energy production, and system defense. Some nutrients naturally found in food have been isolated or replicated as 'supplements', dense nutrition in a tablet, capsule, drink, or powder.
To be healthy requires more than calories. This measurement of heat or energy produced by digestion dates from the 18th century, when the value of a calorie was established. 'Empty calories' are foods that can cause weight gain but offer no true nutritional value to the body. It is now known that we need vitamins, minerals, fiber, and other nutrients to thrive.
Whole, fresh foods hold out the best hope of a diet sufficient in vitamins, minerals, and other beneficial substances. For many generations, people lived on food that they produced or gathered themselves, and this food provided what they needed to maintain health and stave off illness. Vegetables from the garden, fruit off the trees, grain from the fields, and meat from the barnyard were staples of everyday diets.
When people moved to the cities and became dependent on store-bought food, this began to change. Foods were modified for commercial reasons, with either a disregard for health or an ignorance of what promotes it. Milk is one example. It was first pasteurized to kill tuberculosis germs and later homogenized, to make all milk look the same regardless of butterfat content. White bread became popular, even though much of the nutrition of wheat was lost when the bran was removed.
To extend shelf-life, essential fatty acids are removed, which has caused a general lack of these vital nutrients. Fiber is not popular with those who like soft or crisp baked goods, and vegetable oils used as common ingredients have been rendered unhealthy by processing. Sugar addiction is a problem for many and causes obesity, bone degeneration, and tooth decay, as well as vitamin and mineral deficiencies.
Food is said to be the best medicine. An effort should be made to get as much fresh, whole food as possible every day. Food allergies or sensitivities can complicate things for people who may already be suffering from malnutrition. Artificial colors, flavorings, and preservatives have proved harmful in laboratory studies, and many believe they aggravate such things as allergies, attention deficit disorder, and hyperactivity in children.
Not all of a nutritional program concerns food. Exercise to tone muscle and promote fitness is very important. Walking, weight training, and body building tone muscles and strengthens the digestive tract and other internal organs. An adequate supply of pure water every day is vital. Deep sleep, which escapes many, is also necessary. Breathing from the diaphragm, as happens during exercise, is another health booster.
Anyone interested in a good quality of life, with freedom from pain and illness and enough energy to enjoy both work and play, must understand nutrition and assess their own diet. Much suffering and expense can thus be avoided.
To be healthy requires more than calories. This measurement of heat or energy produced by digestion dates from the 18th century, when the value of a calorie was established. 'Empty calories' are foods that can cause weight gain but offer no true nutritional value to the body. It is now known that we need vitamins, minerals, fiber, and other nutrients to thrive.
Whole, fresh foods hold out the best hope of a diet sufficient in vitamins, minerals, and other beneficial substances. For many generations, people lived on food that they produced or gathered themselves, and this food provided what they needed to maintain health and stave off illness. Vegetables from the garden, fruit off the trees, grain from the fields, and meat from the barnyard were staples of everyday diets.
When people moved to the cities and became dependent on store-bought food, this began to change. Foods were modified for commercial reasons, with either a disregard for health or an ignorance of what promotes it. Milk is one example. It was first pasteurized to kill tuberculosis germs and later homogenized, to make all milk look the same regardless of butterfat content. White bread became popular, even though much of the nutrition of wheat was lost when the bran was removed.
To extend shelf-life, essential fatty acids are removed, which has caused a general lack of these vital nutrients. Fiber is not popular with those who like soft or crisp baked goods, and vegetable oils used as common ingredients have been rendered unhealthy by processing. Sugar addiction is a problem for many and causes obesity, bone degeneration, and tooth decay, as well as vitamin and mineral deficiencies.
Food is said to be the best medicine. An effort should be made to get as much fresh, whole food as possible every day. Food allergies or sensitivities can complicate things for people who may already be suffering from malnutrition. Artificial colors, flavorings, and preservatives have proved harmful in laboratory studies, and many believe they aggravate such things as allergies, attention deficit disorder, and hyperactivity in children.
Not all of a nutritional program concerns food. Exercise to tone muscle and promote fitness is very important. Walking, weight training, and body building tone muscles and strengthens the digestive tract and other internal organs. An adequate supply of pure water every day is vital. Deep sleep, which escapes many, is also necessary. Breathing from the diaphragm, as happens during exercise, is another health booster.
Anyone interested in a good quality of life, with freedom from pain and illness and enough energy to enjoy both work and play, must understand nutrition and assess their own diet. Much suffering and expense can thus be avoided.
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