Consumerism versus Consumer Health
Most of our behaviours are shaped by what’s convenient and what everybody else is doing. We are currently in a socially accepted madness. The evolution of our food, our lifestyle, our living conditions over the last century has created a global pandemic of chronic metabolic disease. At the same time, our food production slipped from “Farmer-Harvester” to “Processor-Polluter”.
Attractive foods on TV or in supermarket promote consumerism but alter consumer health
Fruits and vegetable varieties, crops, seeds, pesticides, hormones, cattle and food farming are imposed by the food industry. In the meantime, daily cooking at home is disappearing and the global food delivery market is growing. We want quick access to food at a low price, without thinking about the cost, the long term cost for our health and wellness.
You are not your body but your body is yours
Every cells and tissue in your body rely on the quality of your food. Your state of health, your vitality and your resilience are literally made up of the food you eat. According to Dr Jean-Pierre Willem, up to 80% of chronic disease may be linked to dietary habits.
Our modern diet lacks lively foods and promotes nutrient-deficient, processed, pasteurized, and refined foods. To extend shelf life and keep a nice, attractive look, processing alter or wipe out all the nutritional qualities of food: vitamins, phytonutrients, and fibres. It is definitely a process that sounds absurd from a health and wellness perspective, as it transforms food from ally to threat.
Would less be more?
Cereals at breakfast, three meals a day plus snacks, double shots coffee latte every day are the new normal. Few years into digging into evidence-based medicine, I came to the conclusion that “normal” does not mean healthy and less is more.
As your body is already confronted with stress, anxiety, a sedentary lifestyle, water and air pollution, toxins, alcohol, antidepressants, hormones, it is time to pause and simplify.
If all the transformative food processes, initially set for convenience, increase your daily toxic load, managing the content of your plate will take your health and life to the next level.
Eating well for fasting well
In order to promote wellness and prevent chronic dis-ease and disease, eating less often and shopping ethically may become the new normal.
Abundant recent studies show the positive impact of these behaviours on our metabolic and hormonal health and confirm these habits are conducive of healthy longevity.
Ethical shopping – The SLOW movement
Eating Seasonal, Local, Organic, Whole Foods has been shown to improve health and in many instances reverse chronic patterns. Food management starts with your shopping.
This pyramid* is a great guide for staying healthy while shopping ethically. A picture is worth thousands of words.
Time-Restricted Eating – The CHRONO movement
Above eating whole, fresh foods from the farmers, Time-Restricted Eating has been shown to improve blood sugar balance, fat burning and cognitive function.
The physiological effects of Time-Restricted Eating make great sense. Spacing your meals revives your lost metabolic flexibility and promotes a restorative digestive rest.
And it simplifies your life. If you want to gain time and spend less, that’s the way to go. S
Simplicity is not about deprivation, it is about creating space for living.
