“Let Food Be Thy Medicine ”
you have the option to choose health
with what you put in your mouth
what do we mean by food as medicine
Real food roots: Almost 2500 years ago Hippocrates said “Leave your drugs in the chemist's pot if you can heal the patient with food." For centuries people have been using food to relieve symptoms, treat and prevent disease and most importantly to bring people together, celebrate and enjoy. Long before doctors and medications became a treatment strategy, healers and tribal elders would seek out available herbs and plant foods to feed to their community to promote good health, prevent and treat illness.
Modern research validates foods healing ability: Now we are in an era where research can validate the healing power of food. We know that nutrient deficiencies as well as excess consumption of processed foods are drivers of illness, inflammation and chronic disease. Food is so powerful that the food and lifestyle choices your mother made before you were even conceived has an affect on your health outcomes, predisposition and chronic disease risk.
The impact of the Westernised way: Today diabetes, heart disease, autoimmune conditions, mental illness, and digestive disorders and cancers are on the rise. The good news is all of these conditions can be prevented and managed through a real food approach and lifestyle changes that become second nature. Medication dosages can be lowered and sometimes eliminated with the healing power of food when consumed wisely. Science has proven that our modern day dietary guidelines are largely to blame for the epidemic of chronic disease we see burdening our health, economy, local communities and nations. Unfortunately it can get rather confusing trying to navigate your way around food choices with so many conflicting health messages as well as influences from government campaigns, large-scale agriculture, Big Food companies and environmental choices.
What the heck should I eat ? There are many different approaches to eating and beliefs of what is the “ideal diet”. The Wayfinderhealth way is an individualised approach with a lower carbohydrate and healthy fat focus (LCHF). As a nutritionist I know their is not one size fits all diet. Veganism, the carnivore diet, keto, high carb, low fat, intermittent fasting, paleo, anti inflammatory and more the list can go on of dietary approaches, and these choices can produce positive health changes in some, when applied correctly. However without understanding, knowledge and professional guidance they are often not sustainable long term and can lead to health complications as well as nutrient deficiencies.
The Real Food way ! LCHF stands for lower carbohydrate, healthy fats, It is not a diet it’s a lifestyle! This approach is about choosing real foods our body is designed to recognise and building your plate with healing foods. It allows flexibility and focuses on ensuring the right balance of macro nutrient intake. Carbohydrates from lower starch vegetables, fruits and gluten free grains, healthy unprocessed fats and quality protein sources. Real food can be defined as food that comes from the ground, off a tree or from an animal.
Why choose LCHF Real Food lifestyle? Choosing real food means eating unprocessed, nutrient dense foods that will not only improve your health and make you feel great but also reduce the impact on the environment by significantly reducing waste from packaged food items. You will find yourself consuming more nutrient dense and whole food sources of nutrition. By reducing and freeing yourself from gluten, refined sugars and trans fats you can benefit from reduced inflammation, increased energy levels, balanced hormones, improved mood, performance and recovery.
Real Food Foundations:
1.Choose non starchy vegetables: Load your plate with predominantly vegetables, vegetables of many colours “eat the rainbow” and lower in carbohydrate to keep your glucose levels stable. Leafy greens, broccoli, cauliflower, tomatoes, red cabbage, mushrooms, fresh herbs to name a few. You will benefit from high nutrient profile, rich in Vitamins A,C,K, plenty of fiber to feed those good gut bugs and support digestion, Polyphenols and antioxidants to reduce inflammation and ageing.
2. Include healthy fats: Saturated and monounsaturated fats are NOT bad for you. Fat will make you fat ? WRONG! Good fat will keep you feeling satisfied, help you burn stored fat promote healthy hormones and reduce inflammation. Saturated fats provide the building blocks to our cell membranes, assist in the absorption of fat soluble vitamins, regulate blood sugar and insulin control and provide a lasting source of energy. Healthy fats to include:
Omega -3 fats from foods like avocado, nuts, seeds, olives and olive oil, fish and grass fed animal products
Saturated fats from real food sources include virgin coconut oil (choose organic un refined), MCT oil (medium chain triglyceride), animal fat like grass fed ghee and lard, as well as un sweetened full fat dairy (if tolerated)
3. Quality proteins: Remember quality over quantity, especially when it comes to animal protein. Knowing weather animal proteins are grass fed, pasture raised, free range and hormone free makes a big difference to the quality of the protein, to the affects on both our health and that of the environment. Where possible avoid grain fed protein as this increases inflammatory omega 6 and mono crop agriculture degrades our soils negatively impacting the environment. Some examples of good sources of protein include free range eggs, chicken, turkey, fish, kangaroo, pasture raised beef, lamb, tofu, nuts and seeds, organic tofu and tempeh and legumes. Protein is not only important for muscle growth and repair but in the right amounts protein also helps regulate blood sugar levels, improves cognitive function, improves mood through neurotransmitter production and can assist in body fat reduction.
4. Wholefood carbohydrates: These are vegetables and fruits higher in starch and carbohydrate load, fruits such as apples, bananas and oranges, starchy vegetables, root vegetables like sweet potato, potato and beetroot. Gluten free grains such as rice, quinoa and buckwheat. These higher carbohydrate containing foods are best consumed less frequently than your lower carbohydrate non starch vegetables and in smaller amounts than the other food groups. Wholefood carbohydrates are best consumed post exercise training to replenish muscle glycogen stores. As higher carbohydrate foods can increase glucose levels, the amount needed will depend on the individuals metabolic efficiency, age, sex, activity level and health goals. Wholefood carbohydrate benefits include natural fiber and digestive support, resistant starch providing a source of prebiotics for healthy gut microbes and fuel for high intensity exercise.
5. Buy local and in season where possible Buying your produce locally, directly from the farmer or even better growing it yourself has many benefits. Not only do you know where your food has come from, you can speak with the producer and ask what farming practices they use, do they use sprays and are the animals grain or grass fed etc. Eating food that is in season when possible means you are getting it fresh and at the time of the year when our bodies are designed to be consuming it. Naturally we wouldn’t have access to an abundance of sweet fruit in the colder darker months of winter when we tend to be less active and storing those winter kilos. This doesn’t mean not consuming any fruit or out of season vegetables through the winter but to be a little more mindful about when fruit and veg are in season, at their freshest and the distance it has had to travel to arrive on your plate (example the other side of the world?). By consciously trying to support local and in season you will be supporting our local economy and the demand for fresh quality produce, reducing your carbon foot print by reducing the distance the food has had to travel to reach your plate and making more mindful and healthy food choices.
The Real Food Foundations listed above is not a diet guideline, it is a lifestyle. When used as a general template it allows flexibility, is sustainable and can be adapted to individual health goals and different food philosophies.