Dr. Karen Baker, BSc, DC
You may have heard the old adage, “You are what you eat”; it’s not as corny as it sounds. Every day, you are building thousands of new cells and enzymes for your heart, blood, lungs, bones, skin, and muscles, etc.. The building blocks for these tissues come from the food you eat; therefore, what you eat does, actually, determine your physical and chemical make-up.
More than that, if you swallow a multivitamin, and see it excreted in a bowel movement… intact, you can be sure you have absorbed very little of the nutrients in it. The nutrients from your food must be digested properly and absorbed in your bloodstream in order to do you any good.
Further, getting these nutrients from the time of digestion to the formation of different cells, enzymes, fluids, and tissues is another sophisticated process. The nervous system alerts different parts of the body of the various needs, for healing, growth, maintenance or regular replacement.
Choosing a variety of the right foods - rich in nutrients, and in the right proportions – are the first steps towards a healthier body and improved vitality.
Tips for a healthy diet: Keep it simple - eat raw or minimally cooked fruits and vegetables, and AVOID processed foods. (If it wasn’t food 100 years ago, it’s probably not food now.) Use moderation - larger portion sizes is the number 1 cause of obesity in North America. Graze, don’t gorge - 5 or 6 small meals throughout the day are easier to digest than 1 or 2 big meals.