How We Should Think About Food??
When we start to feel hungry, we start to tire out and so we realize that we need to refill the tank. We may then seek out any kind of food we can, preferably something that we will find tasty and then we eat until we’re full.
But food is not just fuel, it is also a material and a resource. This is what the body is made from. Our bodies work by taking what’s in our diets and then recycling that into the raw materials that build our bones, our muscles and our brains. This creates the important hormones and neurotransmitters that enable countless reactions and processes throughout our body. And it is what we use in order to fight disease and cancer.
If all you think about is ‘filling yourself up’, then your body will be missing out on crucial nutrients and that is when you start to feel slow and groggy. That is when you start to notice your skin flaking, your eyes looking bloodshot and your hair becoming brittle.
Nutrient Deficiency
Did you know that 80% of the US population is deficient in magnesium for instance? That is a huge number and it’s devastating when you think just what this mineral does: it helps to form bone and connective tissue by helping with the uptake of calcium, it prevents muscle pains and aches, it accelerates learning through brain plasticity, it enhances our sleep and it helps men produce more testosterone for greater virility and masculinity. This is just one nutrient and it does all that. Imagine the effect of not getting enough.
Vitamin D: which we can get from the sun or a few dietary sources. Again, many of us are deficient thanks to our desk-bound indoor lifestyles, which results in lower testosterone production again, poor sleep, low mood and susceptibility to disease and illness. Vitamin D acts like a ‘master key’ for many of your hormones and helps to regulate your hunger and your energy levels among many other things. Studies suggest that adding vitamin D to diets could save thousands of lives each year by preventing serious diseases!
Vitamin B12 is a vitamin that enhances the body’s formation and use of red blood cells, enabling us to transport energy and nutrients to our brain and muscles. Many people are low in this, especially vegetarians – which can cause nerve damage, depression inflammation.
Essential fatty acids, vitamins, amino acids, minerals all serve countless crucial and important jobs throughout the body and most of us aren’t getting enough. That’s because we’re just eating processed sugary foods, such as cake, sausage rolls and Coca-Cola: empty calories.
How To Increase Nutrients
A) Switch to fresh natural foods. That means that you’re going to try to eat things that you prepare yourself from fresh ingredients at least four times a week. This doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive. It can be as easy as having some chicken with a side of broccoli and rice, or it could mean having a salad leads with avocado, tomatoes and tuna fish. This takes minutes to make and it’s not more expensive than a ready meal.
B) Take a multi-vitamin. While it’s true that it is better to get the nutrients we need from our diet, many of us will fail in this endeavor and so we’re left with no option other than to get it from supplementation. There is nothing wrong with doing this as long as it absorbs and it certainly can’t hurt to boost your levels of those crucial nutrients.
C) Seek out super foods and dense sources of nutrients. For example, you should consume smoothies occasionally if possible. I recommend swapping out your morning coffee on the way to work for a fruit smoothie (or better yet, a vegetable smoothie which is lower in sugar). Likewise, I recommend boiling a bunch of eggs and then snacking on them throughout the week. These are high in the brain boosting ‘choline’, as well as being complete sources of essential amino acids. Avocados are great because they contain magnesium, healthy saturated fats and more.
Watch my video
If you want to supplement your diet further, here are some things you can add that will help you to feel and perform much better:
Lutein: Previously lauded primarily for its benefits for the eyes, lutein is a nutrient that can increase energy levels, as well as enhancing the brain.
Magnesium threonate: Taken before bed, this will enhance your sleep and strengthen your brain.
Omega 3 fatty acid: This protects the cells from damage, reduces inflammation (to combat joint pain and brain fog) and speeds up the communication between cells to boost brain performance.
Cordyceps: This can fortify you against adrenal fatigue and chronic stress. This is one of the biggest issues with our health today and by supplementing against it, you can increase your energy levels and prevent illness associated with being run-down.
The point is that by making these changes, you should start to look and feel healthier. You’ll have more energy, a better mood and your brain will work quicker. This will then make it easier for you to start focusing on other aspects of your health such as weight loss and fitness.
@bitdollar
Help support me on Steemit by engaging on this post!! All feedback is greatly helpful to better myself, my content and as well as everybody else that follows.
You can subscribe to my YouTube Channel at www.youtube.com/mattj3
My recent trip to Mexico
Glad I found this article! I've been taking Vitamin D, B-12, and Omega 3 supplements. I researched a lot and apparently most supplements don't do much. I also haven't really noticed any sort of difference in my energy levels.
I listened to a podcast where they explained how multivitamins and calcium are the worst ones. Apprarently, calcium supplements don't actually support bone health and strength. It can actually hurt us.
Now, I realize there's always going to be differing results and opinions about taking supplements. Have you, personally seen any differences in your health, mood, energy, and productivity because of the supplements you take?
Yea I have heard those same issues. I don't see much with supplements to be honest unless they are pure organic ones. You can get supplements that are plant based and basically herbs. These are much more powerful and potent because they are coming from living things. It is essentially like food. My vegans friends rave about them but they can be costly. In the end, getting everything I can from food is my main goal. If I am lacking in something, I will hit some supplements up. Mood, energy, and productivity comes mostly from mindset in my opinion. But if the diet is terrible then that will affect you in some ways for sure.
I would love it if you could send me some links to buy the supplements you've been recommended by your friends!
Diet isn't always perfect as a college student for me; timing with classes and what not. I also live in the Midwest so it's rare to be out in the sun during the cold months so I started taking Vitamin D supplements :P
Regarding mood and energy, I think getting just the right amount of sleep has been the best solutions for me. I saw just the right amount because sleeping too much just ruins the day for me. Slow and groggy feeling all day.
Looking forward to more of your posts!
Down here they buy everything pretty much at Nature's Emporium. https://www.naturesemporium.com/
Not sure if they have them in the US? I can also ask which supplements in general they are, if you like.
I hear you about a busy schedule. I have been so busy the start of this year and been working indoors so much that the other day I was so tired and moody, which I am never. I think because I was Vitamin D, deficient. (A reason why I made this post today)
Sleep balance is so important and you are 100% correct. Too much and you feel even more tired then ever. Too little and you are just not in that perfect flow. 7 hours and I am feeling just perfect to go all out in my day.
I will look into the supplements and see what I find! :P Thanks!!
Same! :D
:):)
Ever since I got lyme I have to watch every lil thing I eat. Sugar is like poison for me! I eat only health food not by choice lol
Similar issue came up with me. Had acid reflex and a parasite. Many foods triggered horrible reactions. The positive is it puts us on a better path going forward! Thanks for sharing @cyberblock!
Thank you so much. I really find this useful. My son has a calcium deficiency and that too in spite of consuming calcium rich foods, wonder why?
Hmm I would definitely do some more research on it. The great thing is that you know he is deficient in calcium, which is usually the biggest problem...not knowing. Now you can work from there to test different foods and supplement to get him back on track.
Very nice presentation ... and what important information!! Wise food choices and good nutrition are so essential to living a comfortable, productive, healthy life. Schools should emphasize this subject in their curriculum far more than they do. You eat food every day ... but when was the last time you used a quadratic equation or diagrammed a sentence or had to recite the details of the Crimean war? It's a good thing we have you @bitdollar to fill this fundamental gap. Keep putting it out there!!
I've used quadratic equations more than most in my life. I have never diagrammed a sentence. I don't even know what that means, let alone how to do it. As for the Crimean war:
"Half a league, half a league,
Half a league onward ..."
Food, on the other hand, I eat several times a day.
Trust me, I'm a doctor.
We all know your life has not been a normal human experience, so we can take most of what you say with a grain of salt. I, on the other hand, can diagram a sentence -- not that I would want to any more now than when I was in school. I can't tell you much more about the Crimean War ... and if you try to make me do a quadratic equation, I promise to smack you. Hard. You will not like it.
You and food however, have a legendary connection. I can distract you from any more smart-ass replies just by waving a bag of chips in your direction. Chips, however, are not good for you. Fortunately I could use a bowl of spinach or a carton of yogurt just as easily. You'll eat anything that can't run away. I hope you learned something about nutrition from this presentation. It would make my job a whole lot easier. And wouldn't that be a nice change?
I totally agree with you. Thanks so much for your kind words @enchantedspirit!
Totally agree with you my friend. We are what we eat. It is important to take care of our body, so our body can take care of us. Excellent content.
That sums it up perfectly! :)
Ouch, diet.
Something I need to focus as well.
Wee, I think I have too much already for this year, so this waits. But not so focused, I'll try to do my best "on the background". :)
lol. It can be tough we get sucked in our favorite treats. A good way to help control this is to create distance between them, physically and time wise. The longer the distance it is, the more we can have the will power to push it away. :D
A lot of people around me are doing the “Keto diet”. This post was very helpful. I’ve had the habit of considering food my comfort. And i enjoy food. I just need to get into the right mindset about food being fuel and not comfort.
Ya and I find when we have a different perspective of it, it makes it much easier! Thanks for sharing this @jeejee!
Preach brother!! I am always grubbin' on that raw food. Very informative and thorough here. Hopefully people give this a read and listen. This could change a life, thank you.
Thanks so much @mental-extract! I am moving more and more into a raw diet myself.
That's good to hear!
Great post. I really love to read it. I try to watch what and when I'm eating, but I still have some issues. Will try to do my best and stick to the new habits.
Yea start by recognizing first what you want out of your diet then start eliminating things one by one. You can do it, it is all mindset. A trick to stop eating things you like is to remember distance. The longer and further you stay away from something, the easier it will be to not do it.
I just have to make a clear vision of what I want. Focus, focus, focus... Thank you for your words. Followed, to read some more about it. Have a nice day.
Yea and start small. Do little things. That will start to develop the pattern.
I know I'm not getting the vitamins my body needs from my diet, that's why I decided to switch my breakfast with raw juice... I'm also thinking of taking a multi-vitamin. Great post, thanks for the info!!
I do the same with my breakfast. It feels so good to put the most healthiest foods in us with the first meal! :)