For too long processed foods have had a stronghold over the way people tended to eat. There is now a trend that is showing that a lot of people trying to cut back on the amount of processed foods they are eating and serving their families. Cooking shows like MasterChef are reiterating the importance of eating natural and fresh foods and that it’s fun and easy to create delicious and nutritious meals at home.
What are Natural Foods?
Basically, natural foods are those foods that are not (or very minimally) processed. Natural foods include things like:
- Vegetables,
- Fruit,
- Meat,
- Eggs,
- Nuts, seeds, grains and
- Dairy.
Natural foods are those that don’t have any artificial ingredients. These wholesome foods are best kinds of foods to eat. The less done to them, the better they tend to be for you – so make sure that you include plenty of natural foods in your diet.
What happens if YOU don’t Eat enough Natural Foods?
If you eat too many processed foods and not enough natural foods, you may soon find that you could be depriving your body of vital vitamins and minerals that processed food just can’t give you. It is widely known that processed and refined foods generally contain a lot more sugar, fat and preservatives.
If you are not careful, you can fall into the processed foods trap. It is (and has been for a while) a major part of our culture – frozen meals, take away foods and soft drinks are three of the major contributors. Yes, these foods might be tasty and very convenient, but do you REALLY know what’s in those processed foods that you eat? There are probably lots of additives, preservatives and flavourings that are in the food that you have no idea about.
What are Low GI Foods?
Let’s start off with a brief explanation of what GI actually is. GI stands for Glycemic Index and the Glycemic Index of a food is based on how rapidly the food is converted into glucose and then how fast that glucose in absorbed into one’s blood stream. So when looking at the GI of a food, you want the low GI foods because they are absorbed slower into the bloodstream and don’t create that ‘sugar high’ that a lot of high GI foods create.
Low GI foods are usually the more natural kinds of foods that haven’t been highly refined. Most fresh fruit and vegetables are lower in GI, than refined juices with added sugars and preservatives.
Choose wholegrain bread over the highly refined plain white bread. How about changing to Basmati rice, from Jasmine rice? The taste is slightly different – but Basmati rice is much better for you, GI wise. There are many books on Low GI foods and you might be surprised how a simple change can affect your wellbeing.
“I can’t eat WHEAT!” What about Wheat Free Foods?
Here are some of the symptoms that one with a wheat intolerance might suffer from:
- Feeling bloated,
- Diarrhoea,
- Nausea or vomiting,
- Skin rashes,
- Tiredness, and
- Watery or itchy eyes.
If you suffer from these after eating products containing wheat, you might have a wheat allergy. It might be worth seeing a doctor to do some tests – in the mean time, do a bit of research on wheat free foods. There are heaps of alternatives. Don’t feel like you can’t enjoy the tasty things in life just because you can’t eat wheat. You need to be especially carefully when looking at foods like, breads, pastas, cakes and even beer. But don’t stress, there are heaps of alternatives for you. For example the following foods are safe to eat:
- Meat,
- Seafood,
- Nuts,
- Potato,
- Rice based food, and
- Corn based foods.
Are Sugar Free Foods REALLY Healthy?
Let’s get one thing straight. Sugar free does NOT mean it’s good for you! Just because something may be labelled as ‘sugar free’, doesn’t mean that isn’t full of fats and salt. If you can, compare the regular product to the sugar free one. What’s in the sugar free one that is not in the regular product? Artificial sweeteners, more fat, maybe there’s way more sodium?
Sometimes, when you compare the two products together, the regular one might be better for you. Do you trust that the artificial flavourings are better for you? Have you heard anyone say “I don’t eat anything that I cannot pronounce.” That might be a good approach to take when it comes to sugar free foods.
