Five Reasons to Eat Whole Foods

December 22, 2008

Whole foods include vegetables, fruits, and whole, unprocessed grains, nuts, seeds, sprouts and legumes. Whole foods are not processed in any way and that is better for your body. You will find no added fat, sugars, or salt in whole foods.

Whole foods are not to be confused with organic foods. There is a difference in that whole foods can have pesticides and herbicides. So if you are going for a whole food diet, make sure to buy organic whole foods for a healthier experience.

Whole foods can be raw foods, but are not necessarily raw foods.  For example, oatmeal is a “whole food”, containing the protein, healthy fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals in the way that nature intended.  You can cook oatmeal, and it is considered a “whole food”, though not a “raw food”.

To further your whole food experience it is suggested that you eat a high percentage of your whole food in raw and sprouted form. Raw foods carry enzymes that your body needs for proper nutrition.

When it comes to consuming these delicious nutrient rich whole foods, there are many reasons for doing so.

1.  No Added Sugar, Salt, Fat

Compared with foods that are boxed or canned, whole foods contain an array of advantageous nutrients and phytochemicals, providing your body with powerful nutrition as nature intended.  Unlike processed foods these healthy choices are also noteworthy for what they don’t have. Whole foods have no added sugar, salt, or fat.

2.  Powerful Nutrition and Delicious Taste

Eating whole foods fills your body with thousands of phytonutrients that have health-promoting properties, as well as vitamins, minerals, and macronutrients like fiber and beneficial fats. The process of preparing canned and boxed foods removes many of the vital nutrients necessary for good health. An example of this is fresh versus canned tuna. When you cook fresh tuna along with the skin on, you get the tuna meat with all the omega-3 fatty acids that are necessary to support your cells’ membranes and promote health. You can compare that to a can of tuna fish packed in vegetable oil. In the can of tuna about 50% of the omega-3 fats are missing and the delectable taste has been compromised.

3.  No Added Chemicals

By nature, whole foods differ from refined foods in that they are not processed with many chemical additives. Some of these additives are thought to compromise the body’s structure and function and are suggested to be linked to a host of skin, pulmonary and psycho-behavioral conditions.

4.  Lower Toxicity

When you consume a whole food diet you lower the toxicity in your body because you eliminate added fat, sugar, refined flour, sodium, and other ingredients that can encumber your body. You also reduce the exposure to a large number of toxins that exist in conventionally grown/processed foods.

5.  Reduce Expenses

Another great benefit of the consumption of whole foods is the fact that you avoid the high cost of supplements. Supplements are fine and have their place but the bottom line is that in a diet that consisting of high quality organic whole foods, there is not as much need for supplements. Your body is getting the nutrients it needs with a whole food diet.

When it comes to optimum nutrition for good health, incorporating whole foods into your daily diet should be standard. Study, research, ask around and find out which foods you need to remove from your pantry and which ones you need to replace them with. Once you have done that, get to the grocery store for some delicious whole foods.

Posted by Diana | Filed Under Healthy Lifestyles 

Yes, I need help controlling my cravings!
Please send me all of your best tips Diana!

Name:
Email:

Similar Posts by The Cravings Coach

Comments

One Response to “Five Reasons to Eat Whole Foods”

  1. Checklist – 7 Steps To Stop Sugar Cravings | The Cravings Coach on December 24th, 2008 10:50 am

    [...] to read, make a phone call and jabber for a few moments; do anything but grab those sweets. 5. Eat Whole Foods Eat more whole foods. Fruit and vegetables, legumes, nuts, and whole grains contain some naturally [...]

Got something to say?