The holy grail of nutrition - the one diet suited to everyone, that results in perfect health, an ageless complexion, endless amounts of energy, and is easy to follow/stick to. So what is it??
Well this is probably where I'm going to disappoint at least half of my readers so let me apologise in advance. The reality, as most of us know in our hearts, is that there is no one perfect diet. That is not to say there isn't a perfect diet for you, but chances are that same diet will not work for everyone you meet.
One of the beauties of the world is that we are all unique. We are molded from a wide combination of factors - genetics, lifestyle, environment, external influences, and a little bit of that je ne sais quoi - many of which are controllable and influenced by personal choice. Each of these factors play an important role in our health, and can change and vary the way in which we respond to different types of food. To assume that a 'one size fits all' approach is available really does a disservice to this uniqueness.
So that's great you say, if there is no one answer then where do I even start? With the plethora of information available online now it is very easy to get overwhelmed and disillusioned when trying to be healthy. You make what you think is the best choice based on the information you have only to read a day later that choice is the worst possible one and will result in your imminent death (ok slight exaggeration but I think most people can relate to the frustration).
This is the reason I prefer to focus on individualised nutrition plans because there is no one answer I can give everyone that will take into account all personal variations and produce the same result. However there is one very basic concept that will help almost everyone in their journey to health -
Eat Real Food!
This is such a basic and obvious statement yet most of us need to be reminded of this from time to time. It's not that we don't understand it or that we go out of our way to do the opposite, but often we are blindsided by the advertising and temptation of large companies who play on the needs of modern day life - the need for convenience. We want something quick and tasty, and will often latch onto any hint of healthiness to convince ourselves that the food meets the criteria for whatever health guidelines we are following at that particular time. There is no judgement in this comment, it is simply a product of our increasingly busy lifestyles.
The reasons why we should 'Eat Real Food' may be obvious to you, but just in case they're not let me list a few:
- People survived on this planet for many many years before large food manufacturing industries existed. This, to me, says that the planet is capable of providing everything we need to survive if we use it wisely. While I am not ignoring the issues of population growth and resource depletion it does seem to make sense to stick as closely as possible to what was naturally intended to sustain us.
- Food is perishable, and in order for food manufacturers to provide something that can make it through the production, packaging and transport stage while still providing a reasonable shelf life they often need to add a number of preservatives. While the preservatives used may still be natural, e.g. salt, often levels are higher than are recommended for regular consumption.
- Processed foods can go through multiple stages and processing methods before becoming the end product we buy and consume. Many of these processes can result in nutritional value being lost or elements purposely being removed e.g. water soluble vitamins (C & B vitamins) being depleted as a result of heating, the loss of fibre in refining flours.
- What are you actually eating... Have you ever looked at the ingredients list on your packaged food and been surprised at how many ingredients were listed? Did you recognise half of the ingredients? Often it can be like reading a different language trying to interpret the technical names used by food manufacturers. This may be because the ingredient isn't actually a food as you know it, but rather a preservative, or flavouring, or some other weird and wonderful 'ingredient' that humans have cooked up in a lab. Alternatively it may be because they don't want you to know what is in the food. For example, if you knew that the first 5 ingredients in your food were different forms of sugar (bearing in mind ingredients are listed in the order of highest to lowest quantities) would you still be as quick to buy it?
SO HOW DO WE GO ABOUT EATING 'REAL FOOD'?
1. As much as possible opt for foods with little or no packaging. This isn't to say that all foods sold packaged are bad but more to make the point that the main staples of our diet should be capable of being sold in as natural a state as possible e.g. vegetables, fruit, legumes, fish, meat.
2. Look at the ingredients! If the ingredient list is as long as your arm and/or you don't recognise half the 'foods' on the list then it probably falls more into the processed category than the 'Real Food' category and is not something you want as a main part of your diet.
CHALLENGE TIME!
Generally supermarkets are structured so that the more natural foods (e.g. fruit/veg, meat) are situated around the edges of the shop, with more processed foods taking up the internal aisles. Why not challenge yourself next time you go shopping by trying the following*:
- Limit your shopping to the outside edges of the supermarket and cut down on your exposure to the oh so tempting processed foods hiding in the middle.
- Check the ingredients on what you are buying and try to only buy foods with an ingredient list shorter than 10 (5 if you really want to push the boat out) and with foods you recognise.
- Look up one tasty recipe you can try with the ingredients you bought to help train your brain to realise that unprocessed can be just as tasty.
*Note: this challenge assumes your supermarket places the fruit, veg, meat etc. in the peripheral aisles, if this is not the case obviously apply the spirit of the challenge and aim for these aisles.