The first thing I came to realize is that mass processed foods contain countless additives and toxic compounds.  I just took a look at the ingredients on the labels.  I see ingredients that I can’t pronounce and have so many syllables that it’s almost a language of it’s own, I start to wonder what they are.  The simple answer is, that they are chemicals that someone manufactured somewhere.  They became fillers, flavor additives, and God knows what else, to the food that we eat and were led to believe was good for us.

Devastating information, to say the least.  Here we are believing that we are eating healthy just because we cut out junk food and limited our portions and now eat “healthy foods”.  Yet we can’t figure out why we are still gaining weight or at the very least, why we are not losing any.

Well, I have figured out that these “fillers” have absolutely no positive value to the human body.  In fact, there is harm, not good in these additives.  There are many more additives in foods today that there were, even a year ago, never mind 10-20 or more years ago.

Mass produced foods are depleted of the rich vitamins, minerals and nutrients that our bodies crave.  the nutritional value has been replaced by the many additives, artificial flavorings and sweeteners, to make the foods taste good.  The natural taste of food is now artificially replicated.  The addition of all of these chemicals allow the food to be mass produced cheaply and are designed to get you hooked on them.  This goes double for fast foods.  The “secret ingredients” used to produce a taste you could never duplicate at home is no other than some combination of additives that are not going to allow you to maintain good health.

Therefore, you are not only deficient in the very nutrition your body is craving, you also have now polluted your body with chemical toxins that will have a negative impact on your good health.  Toxins are stored in the fat cells and the colon.  Your body will then keep water to try to offset the onslaught of toxins in the body.

So what about diet foods?  The same holds true for them.  Again, read the labels, You will again find artificial additives and chemicals, quite a list of them. So yet again more toxins are being introduced into the body.  As more and more toxins enter the body, it is less and less likely that you are going to lose weight.

So what to do?  Well, what I did was to stop shopping at chain supermarkets that only sell mass produced products.  I go to farmers markets and small grocery stores.  I always, always read the labels.. If I see ingredients that I cannot pronounce, I don’t buy it.. I purchase organic, vegetables, fruits, meats and dairy as much as possible.

I also started making certain food from scratch, using organic recipes, which I thought would be too time consuming, but the food tastes so wonderful that I have actually begun to enjoy the experience.  Homemade soups, breads and juices are great!

Now, this is just the beginning.but so worth it !!  Now, there are things you need to do to remove the toxins that already exist in your body.

Next week see Cleansing the Body of Toxins

Everyone should be taking some kind of nutritional supplement to support the body and immune system, but what exactly do we need?  There are thousands of different supplements on the market.  They range from dangerous, to noneffective, to highly effective.  The supplements you take should  be dependent upon your personal health, especially if you have health issues that require you to take medication.   How do we find the best solution for our need?.  Well there is no easy answer, but lets look at some issues.

Synthetic supplements (multi-vitamins) are sold everywhere.  Your grocery stores and drug stores are full of them.  I advise against taking these for any reason.  The ingredients in these mult-vitamins are created using chemicals not foods.  This is why they are called “synthetic” or “isolated” vitamins.  Over time, taking these supplements could cause or add to health problems.

When you look on the labels of multi-vitamins, under the list of all of the vitamins in the product, look for the ingredients.  Synthetic vitamins will have a list of ingredients that have nothing to do with food. Very easy to detect, such as : Ascorbic Acid, Niacinamide, Magnesium Oxide, Potassium Chloride, etc.  These ingredients (and a bunch more) were used to “manufacure” the synthetic vitamin.

Looking at a whole food supplement also lists the vitamins however, the big difference is in the ingredients section.  Listed are the foods and herbs that the vitamins are extracted from.  Actual FOOD supplements are always derived from FOOD.

So be sure you read the labels of your vitamins. Select only those that give you whole food ingredients. If actual foods are not listed in the ingredients, then it is a synthetic.  Put it back and keep looking.  By taking a whole food supplement, you will actually be benefiting from  the vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and enzymes that naturally occur in whole foods.

A good whole food supplement and  healthy changes in your lifestyle will go a long way toward improving your life.

I enjoy comments and suggestions so please feel free to leave them here..

See you soon !