March 2008

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Healthy You Naturally Newsletter

Have No Guilt When Eating The Fun Food

Diane McLaren of Healthy You Naturally

4th article in the series Steps To Wellness.
12-2008 Will What You're Doing Now Work For You?
01-2008 What Wellness Choices Do You Have?
02-2008 Do You Want To Be A Pond Or A River?
03-2008 Have No Guilt When Eating The Fun Food

“The body has the ability to heal itself if it's given what it needs to do it”. - Hippocrates, the Father of Modern Medicine, about 400 B.C.

Ever wonder why 2 people when faced with seemingly identical circumstances, one becomes ill while the other does not?

If you live in the western world, there’s little doubt that you’re leading a hectic, stressful, time challenged lifestyle. 

More than at any time in recorded history, society has changed so dramatically and so quickly that the rapid rate of the change has placed extraordinary pressures and complexity upon everyone in the family.

On the one hand we can enjoy technologies and convenience never dreamed of by past generations, yet much of our foods are now produced in nutritionally depleted soils, processed beyond recognition and our poultry, beef and fish are living in engineered environments.  They are subject to a vast array of chemicals and genetic engineering, prior to arriving in Store s. 

Nutritional values are measurably declining in the face of an over abundant supply of low nutrient value foods and signs of declining health in the larger population is everywhere.  Weight, diabetes 2, premature aging and so on...

There Is No Magic Pill To Good Health 

Good health today can only be achieved through simple everyday disciplines that over time include regular cleansing, nutrient rich foods, adequate clean water, quality rest, sufficient exercise and processed food avoidance.

Nutritional Fundamentals

Most people know they need good nutrition, but don’t know how … to them it is confusing, so I offer them just a few basic guidelines when getting started:

  • Keep it slow and simple, take small steps and practice each step until it’s a habit that runs automatically.  Adding a new but small step every 2 weeks or so will keep you moving toward your goal.
  • Choose to eat foods that come without barcodes which are typically found on the perimeter of your local grocery Store (avoid the centre isles at the supermarket and you'll save time, money & your health)
  • Eat at the speed of your brain’s ability, it takes about 20 minutes for food to register so I guess mother was right when she said, chew your food slowly!
  • Enjoy some favorite foods and treats … but only after your body is nutritionally fulfilled, and then only in moderation.

These probably make sense to you, yet many people do not know or do not apply them … it seems we have lost a lot of common (food) sense.   Some of the simple nutritional principles I like to begin with my clients include:

  1. Eat 80% dense nutritional whole foods and 20% fun foods
  2. As natural as you can – organics as much as possible
  3. Vary selections for natural color, taste, texture, interest
  4. Fruits and Veggies (min. 10) - increase alkaline foods & antioxidants
  5. Food combining: fruits between meals & no proteins with starches
  6. Focus on what you can eat - not what you cannot
  7. Have no guilt when eating the fun food, but make sure it’s spaced through the week, not all on the same day

The reason I advocate 80-20% is because in the 1980s, every time I got well, among other things I worked with food. 

It really is difficult to eat perfectly every day for most people

I ate perfectly and did not “cheat”, I was a “saint” … at one point I even managed 9 straight months of the perfect diet and I did feel and look great but when I was feeling great, I allowed the less good foods to return again. 

I would feel fine for a while, but slowly the symptoms would reappear so I would get back to nutritional “perfection”.  This cycle continued over 10 yrs.

I remember thinking I must be really bad because I could not keep it up.  I was beating myself up until one day; I was thinking how we humans try to do everything to perfection when it dawned on me ... a leaf is perfect in nature, but it is not perfectly symmetric. 

This Is How I Relate People To Their Food Choices

If the leaf is perfect being asymmetric, why am I trying to make myself crazy adopting the “perfect” diet?  Perhaps Paretto’s 80-20 rule might fit here:

  • we wear 20% of our clothes 80% of the time
  • 80% of the office work is done by 20% of the people
  • Companies recognize that 80% of their revenues come from 20% of their best customers

I’m sure you can name your own but the point is … we should be able to eat perfectly well 80% of the time, and still be healthy!  From that day forward, I have been successfully eating over 80% of the right foods and having “fun” with the rest (without guilt). 

Positive And Lasting Change Takes Time

Improvements and change can’t happen overnight so increasing gradually to 80% is essential by concentrating on what should be eaten, not what should be avoided … the attraction of “bad-foods” is dramatically diminished.

In the beginning, a few people might need to be closer to perfect until their body systems are strengthened and re-balanced but this always depends on how serious their health issues are.

I have found that it is when we go over the 20% line, people start getting into trouble with their health and the body tells us by way of its symptoms like fatigue, constipation, headaches, pain, restless sleep and so on.

This is how I coach people on their food selections:

  • They are in full control and can choose their foods
  • They can have treats but must respect the 80% nutritional rule to meet their health goals 

“In the end, it is not what we do once in a while that really affects us, it is what we do every day … and how we do anything is how we do everything!”

To feel good and look great every day you'll want to consider

  • Lots of good purified water, proper quality and quantity is important (reverse osmosis is recommended)
  • Whole natural (organic is best) foods to help keep your body cleaner and better nourished
  • Lots and lots of fresh seasonal fruits and vegetables
  • Raw unsalted nuts, seeds and unrefined whole grains
  • Appropriate food based nutritional supplements from whole plants that specifically meet your individual body system needs

For lasting results, you'll want to reduce or even avoid exposure to

  • Canned and frozen fruits & veggies
  • Highly processed, refined foods and white bread
  • Red meat (keep to a minimum, small portions and consider organic to avoid the hormones and drugs)
  • Coffee after 11AM , (try organic and in moderation)
  • Alcohol (in moderation)
  • Sugary foods and ditch all 'sugar free' labeled products
  • All fried and fast foods

These good and bad points are a simplification and you will want to be more formal in your approach to eating.  In the end, eat the live foods you like, lots of them, drink plenty of water, stay away from processed foods of all kinds and make it a daily regiment. 

Slowly adopt these changes and you’ll be amazed by the positives in well under 90-days, and rewarded with many years to follow.

Seek Advice And Guidance That Supports Your Health Goals

Consider booking an in-office or by-phone consultation with me to gain a deeper understanding of your state of health and find out how easily you can improve on your current situation. 

I  invite you to discover just how effective and rewarding a natural approach to health can be. 

Healthy regards,

Diane McLaren

P.S. Thank you for allowing me to share this issue with you.  

My book Wake Up...Love The Life You Live co-authored with Anthony Robbins & others,  arrives this Spring 2008 (Publisher delayed but on the way!)

Visit me online for more nutritional features. 

Published Since 1994 © Copyright 1994-2009
Diane McLaren Healthy You Naturally
www.HealthyYouNaturally.com and http://www.DianeMcLaren.com or mail to:
2126 Burnhamthorpe Road W. 98090 Mississauga ON. L5L 5V4 (905) 855-3000

This newsletter is for educational purposes only and is not intended as a tool for diagnosing or prescribing.