Take a look around you. It doesn’t matter where you go; the sad reality is that the majority of people around you are overweight. The fact is that most of these people while considered to be overfed are in fact malnourished. How is that possible? Take a good look at the food Americans are consuming. The majority of it is processed packaged food; void of vital life giving nutrients, and full of sugar, unhealthy fats, and chemicals. The battle of the bulge should be called the battle for life. The statistics prove this point. Most Americans are walking around with at least one or two major nutrient deficiencies and most have multiple nutrients deficiencies that result in major health consequences. It is a serious problem that too many of us overlook. Not only do we see it in the adult population, but the number of children and adolescents that are nutrient deficient is staggering.
I say it over and over again, and I will continue to do it. Foods that are highly processed, including fast food and foods that come out of a package or box are dangerous to your health; on many levels. Not only are they void of the precious vitamins and minerals your body so desperately needs, but they can also cause the body to lose those precious nutrients as well. Carbonated sodas cause the body to lose calcium, high fructose corn syrup causes an entire host of problems that would require an entire blog to address. Processed foods affect our taste buds. We become “conditioned” to crave these unhealthy foods because they are designed to be addicting. Sugar is more addicting that nicotine. This is the reason why when people wean themselves off of sugar, they feel transformed. Yet look around us, we have created a nation of processed food junkies! These are very real problems that will not go away; and will only become worse as we continue down our life of convenience. There must be a trade off at some level. If you can replace one processed meal at a time with real, wholesome foods, chock full of vital nutrients, your taste buds and your body will thank you.
