Photo: Contributed
Most people who come to me for nutritional advice say one of two things: They think they eat pretty healthy and know what to do, but they just don’t.
First of all, just because we know doesn’t automatically mean we will. Our thoughts dictate our actions, and often the people I work with are so despondent and discouraged by the number of disappointing dietary experiences that they begin to accept the lie that they will never be able to achieve their health goals.
Second, there is a marked difference between eating healthy and eating balanced. You absolutely can choose healthy foods, but if you don’t know how to choose them correctly, in the right combinations, in the right portions, and at the right frequencies, even healthy foods can raise your blood sugar and cause your body to store fat.
If you have been following me for some time, you will have seen something about the importance of stabilizing blood sugar. Balanced blood sugar level is very important. So important, in fact, that it is the way our bodies were created to function.
Newborns are checked to make sure their blood sugar levels are stable before they leave the hospital. Babies naturally maintain that stability. Anyone who has children knows that a baby or toddler is hungry as soon as they wake up.
Babies are fed breast milk or formula, which is a perfect balance of protein, fat, and carbohydrates to stabilize blood sugar. It also doesn’t change much as they grow.
Once kids start eating solid foods, heaven forbid you have to leave the house with a toddler in tow and not bring a snack, right? That’s your blood sugar drop. They get “hungry” and start pestering you for a snack.
That same process happens in our adult bodies, but in our busy world and with all those diets in the back of our minds that say “don’t eat that” or even “don’t eat if you want to lose that weight”. we suck on it and ignore those cues to eat.
Our bodies haven’t changed much since we were babies in the way we ingest and metabolize food, we just became bigger humans. And, the older we get, the crazier our eating habits seem to get.
Eat no fat, cut carbs, count calories, don’t eat at night, don’t eat in the morning, eat three meals a day and don’t snack, eat five meals a day and yes, snack – the constant barrage of La information overload, frankly, misinformation has the majority of our population on a diet rollercoaster that they can’t seem to get out of, or so confused they don’t do anything.
How does that work for you? I will venture to say that it is safe to say that it is not. Nearly 30 percent of adults in Canada are obese, and more than 31 percent of children ages 12 to 17 are obese. (The 2012-13 figures were the most recent data I could find on obesity in children.)
Clearly diets aren’t working and certainly doing nothing doesn’t work. What does work is the stabilization of blood sugar.
Blood sugar stabilization works for all bodies. It’s how we entered this world, and the sooner we get back into it, the sooner we’ll see things start to change. But diets don’t teach you that because the diet industry is a multi-billion dollar industry and if you find something that works for you, your spouse, your kids, anywhere, in any situation, you’ll never go on a diet again. That would not be good for your bottom line.
Instead of depriving yourself, restricting foods, counting calories, or cutting out entire food groups, why not learn to eat the foods you love in a way that balances hormones, stabilizes blood sugar, boosts metabolism, and improves metabolism? put your body in a place where it naturally releases stored fat, protects muscle mass, increases energy and eliminates cravings?
It will create a healthy inflammatory response; By the way, inflammation is the main cause of all diseases. Reduce the risk of metabolic diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, stroke, heart disease and stroke and you will create health. in your body as your body naturally releases the weight.
It’s really simple. Eating foods in the right combinations, in the right portions, and at the right frequencies throughout the day will do all of that.
One thing to remember, it’s not a diet. That means results typically won’t happen overnight. But they will happen, and in a healthy way.
Wherever you are on your health journey, it didn’t happen overnight and reversing those effects can take some time. The amount of time usually depends on how long your body has been living in a state of deprivation and out of balance.
What I do know, however, is that it’s less about your age and more about how long you’ve been doing/not doing the things that benefit your health and your body.
If you’re ready to stop dieting and start living, email [email protected] and book your free consultation.
This article is written by or on behalf of a contract columnist and does not necessarily reflect Castanet’s views.
