It blows my mind the way food has become more and more complicated. Products advertise ‘real food’ as ingredients, things say they have zero calories or zero sugar and somehow that makes them seem healthier, and the ingredient list becomes harder to pronounce. But nutrition does not need to be complicated, it is actually quite simple, and what our bodies require to function never changes.
So I wanted to write this post to talk about the purpose of food and why we eat.
The purpose of eating is not just to satisfy hunger for a few hours, although this is commonly what we think the purpose of eating is. But food provides your body with the fundamental nutrients that it cannot produce on its own. The right food provides nutrients and energy for all the different function that the body performs. So rather than finding something to eat to that will just fill you up, look for something that is worthwhile and will give your body what it needs.
There are 6 elements that food can be broken into, they are:
Carbohydrates
Easily broken down into sugars, quickest energy, not the longest lasting
Protein
Takes more time to break down, turns into amino acids, 20 types
9 essential amino acids; means the body cannot produce these and they have to come from food
11 non-essential; means the body can produce them
Fat
Takes the most time to break down, provides the longest lasting energy
Water
Required by all living things
Used in all parts of the body
Vitamins
13 different vitamins needed
Minerals
15 different minerals needed
And that’s it. There isn’t a recommendation for things like processed chemicals, sugar, or added colours and flavours. But avoiding these items is next to impossible because they are practically in everything. So when it comes to eating something ask yourself how much nutritional benefit you’re getting from eating that item.
Try to give you body the right fuel to keep all its functions running properly. You wouldn’t put the lowest grade fuel in a top notch sports car, so make sure you only put THE BEST into your body.
Wendy Bastos