Nutrition vs. Calories

Many times we get enough calories for our body to run and for us to feel fed and full, but we do not get the nutrition we need from the food we eat. This can be caused by eating poor quality food, but it is also caused by having an incompetent digestive system. Most of us do not get adequate nutrition from the fast and processed foods we eat, but we continue to eat them because we are in a hurry. Sometimes we eat foods that we crave even though we know they are not good for us. Therefore, it is important to supplement our nutrition with whole-food nutrition supplements. I recommend that you take a daily, high quality nutritional supplement made from whole foods.

Supplements

Unfortunately, this opens the door to another huge realm of confusion: supplements. This is a growing market filled with poor quality products that can sabotage your campaign to prevent illness and disease. Even expensive "pharmaceutical grade" vitamins are fractionated (chemically separated - supplements treated in this way lack other nutrients that help the body metabolize the supplement). This isn't what your body wants or needs. These supplements are derived by dividing up the elements in a food source.

For example, when Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) is taken from the rose hip, all the other natural components in the rose hip that allow Vitamin C to be assimilated are removed. As a result, you are left with a a fraction of the nutrients that the body needs to actually use that Vitamin C. Your body has to pull the missing elements from its already deficient supply, thus defeating your intention to supplement what you need.

Your Body Needs Fat

As stated earlier, digestion mainly involves first breaking down the particles of the food you eat and then breaking down the chemical bonds in the foods. Once digested, food needs to be absorbed into your body's cells so that it can be used as fuel. In order to pass into the cells, the cell membranes need to be healthy. These membranes let nutrition and oxygen pass into your cells, and they let carbon dioxide and waste products pass out.

Your cell membranes are made of Phospholipids (layers of protein and fats). The healthier your cell membranes are, the better they function. However, as you age, cell membranes get stiffer and don't function as well. Our bodies don't efficiently digest poor quality fats, such as trans-fats, soybean oil or palm oil. These poor quality fats contribute to the 'stiffness' and dysfunction of our cell membranes. Taking a good fatty acid supplement will help your cell membranes function better and will also reduce inflammation in your body. Some people take fish oil supplements, and that's an excellent choice if you can digest it well.

Moving Forward

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