The "Real" Healthy Diet

It is easy to understand why consumers are confused when it comes to eating a healthy diet. There are many fad diets marketed as diets to make you healthy or lose weight. How is one to know which diet to follow? The answer to the healthy diet is a simple one. The "real" healthy diet isn't a secret that a doctor or scientist found. It isn't a fad. It is something that has been known to generations of people, but forgotten as a result of technology.

The "real" healthy diet is really the only diet that is healthy. It is a diet that consists of real pure food and not processed food. Processed foods are foods that have been processed in a factory. Foods such as canned, dried and frozen foods are usually processed in factories. The process of canning, drying and freezing of foods in order to preserve them, takes a lot of the flavor out of them. Chemicals and preservatives are added to the foods to enhance the flavors and extend shelf life. Food manufacturers have even found ways to make new flavors to entice the taste buds of consumers. The process of processing food, destroys nutrients in the food. Food manufacturers often add vitamins back to the foods in an attempt to increase the processed foods nutritional value. Even with the added vitamins, the processed food still lacks the nutritional value of the original unprocessed food. The end result of processed food is a tasty edible item that has little nutritional value. To make matters worse, the chemicals and preservatives added to the processed food are often very unhealthy.

Real pure food is food that has not been altered or processed. Fresh fruits and vegetables are excellent real pure foods. Whole grain rice (brown rice) and bread products are another great source of real pure foods. White breads and white rice have gone through a manufacturing process that removes part of the grain When buying whole grain products, read the ingredients. Manufacturers have found a way to be tricky when selling brown rice's and wheat breads. They will often advertise that a product is whole grain when it isn't entirely. The product contains some whole grain, but it also contains processed grain such as bleached wheat flour.

If you eat meat, choose meat that has not been processed such as fresh chicken, turkey, beef or fish. Bologna, salami, cured ham, and bacon are examples of meats that have been processed. These meats contain chemicals that are harmful to your health.

Buying organic foods when possible is always a good idea. Organic foods not only don't contain harmful pesticides, they have more nutritional value. Farmers that grow conventional produce (meaning produce grown with pesticides), have found ways to make fruits and vegetables grow and look good in circumstances that they normally wouldn't. Fruits and vegetables need certain nutrients in the soil in order to grow. When produce is grown in soil, it leeches the nutrients it needs out of the soil. After growing crops in the same soil many times the soil needs to be rested so that the nutrients in the soil can be replenished. Resting the soil means that the farmer can not use that soil for awhile to grow crops. Farmers wanting to turn more of a profit have found ways to make fruits and vegetables grow in nutrient depleted soil with the use of chemicals. The result is produce that looks and tastes good but does not have as much nutritional value. Organic farmers must rest the soil in order for the crops to grow, since they are not allowed to use chemicals. Without the chemicals, the produce can only grow in nutrient rich soil. Organic crops produce fruits, vegetables and grains that are nutritious and don't contain harmful chemicals.

You might find it hard at first to shop in the grocery store to find real pure foods. To buy only real pure foods, you will find that you will have to ignore the majority of the grocery store. It is quite the wake up call to realize that the mass of the grocery store consists of processed foods. Remember processed foods are not really food. Looking around at all the processed foods in the grocery store, one can realize why people have such a hard time figuring out what a healthy diet is. When shopping for the "real" healthy diet, you will find that you have to ignore most of the aisles in the store. You will basically have to stick to the produce section, the meat section if you eat meat. The spice section. The bread and grain sections. The raw nut section and the dairy sections.

You may think that the "real" healthy diet does not have a lot of food choices, considering that you have to ignore the majority of the grocery store. But this is not the case. You can basically eat most of what you ate before, you will just have to cook it yourself. Invest in a good cookbook and you will find many recipes that are healthy, tasty and quick to make. Snacks are quick and easy. Fresh fruits, vegetables and raw nuts make great snacks.

Think back to your grandparents or great grandparents generation and what they ate. Before processed foods, people cooked healthy meals with real pure food.

Eating the "real" healthy diet, may take time to get used to. Old habits are hard to break. But once you get used to it, you will find that you like the taste of real pure food better and you feel better. It is common for people to feel healthier after living on the "real" healthy diet for a couple of weeks.

Now you know what the "real" healthy diet is. It is up to you now to follow it and be healthy. Bon appetit!