Realistic Nutrition!

We have looked at various ways and lifestyle choices to assist in boosting the metabolism and how several things can affect our metabolic rate such as (genetics, gender, age) to name a few.

This week let us take a look at the subject which causes much controversy, even among Christ followers. Many people believe you can eat whatever is edible (some things are questionable) and God will make it ok; although it is true God has created our bodies in such a way to break whatever we eat down for energy, how we eat and the source of our energy still matters. Due to the very fact that what some people consider to be nutritious is relative and everyone has things they believe when it comes to the topic, I will only give some General Guidelines and my own working definition.

Proper Nutrition is simply choosing food that is as high in energy value, mineral, vitamins and fiber as possible. Depending on the circumstances, you have to make the most of what you have available but when you are able to choose you should look to get foods with the following in mind:


· Eat food that is raw, whole, live and uncooked as possible (seeds, nuts, fruits, vegetables, grains)
· Eat as much naturally or organically grown food as possible
· Limit or eliminate any food that is genetically modified (GMO) or injected with antibiotics and growth hormones.
· Limit or eliminate any food that has been sprayed with pesticides or has been enhanced with food additives, preservatives and color dyes.
· Limit or eliminate food that is high in saturated fat, trans-fats, refined sugar, corn syrup, Maltodextrin, refined flours and food starches (especially modified food starch).
· Limit or eliminate any food that has been deep fried in any kind of oil.
· Limit or eliminate carbonated sodas or beverages as they are high in acid and weaken your bones causing them to become more fragile.
· Choose lean (complete amino acid profits) protein sources of red meat, fish, poultry and dairy as possible (range free/grass fed).
· Eat whole grain oats, rice, rye, flax and mullet. Limit whole grain wheat, corn and soybeans.
· Eat cruciferous vegetables, such as Brussels sprouts, cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower.
· Eat yellow and orange foods, such as squash, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, carrots and apricots.
· Eat deep green leafy vegetables, such as spinach, kale, mustard greens, turnip greens, and beet tops.
· Limited amounts of butter, and eliminate any kind of margarine, even the expeller pressed safflower and sunflower oils. Try olive oil.
· Consume low fat organic dairy products. Be careful with raw milk until your body gets used to it.

The basic components of a healthy eating lifestyle include the right amount of:

· Protein- fish, poultry, meat, dairy, eggs, beans, almonds and other raw unsalted nuts
· Fat- found in animal and dairy products; limit the amount of saturated normally found in packaged, fried and processed foods
· Carbohydrates- fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans and other legumes
(More to come on Carbohydrates, Proteins & Fats)