Understanding
Nutrition
With the release
of the new dietary guidelines, in the form of the new
food pyramid, I still find that many people don't actually
understand what nutrition actually means. Because of
this, dietary choices can seem overwhelming. Even greater
confusion can be generated by prime time news specials
which only strive to educate through clever sound-bites
and diet fads which lead some to believe that all of
their answers are found in one single "magic food."
So what is nutrition and how can you understand it in
a way that helps you apply it to your life and to the
benefit of those you know and love? Here's an analogy
I have found helpful in teaching those who attend my
free Sunday Night Wellness Call.
Your body functions in a manner similar to a car assembly
plant. At that plant, a steady stream of new parts,
the correct parts and parts in the right ratios to each
other are absolutely necessary in order to keep that
plant open for business and running smoothly.
What would happen if someone in purchasing forgot to
provide that plant with steering wheels? The cars would
be almost functional. But because of a single part deficiency,
that car would not be able to carry out its intended
function.
If this only happened to a few cars, it probably wouldn't
be a big deal. You wouldn't see any symptoms of a parts
deficiency. But what if that plant had no steering wheels
for an entire month? How about year? First the plant
would probably close, the community would fail. Good
people would move away and the "bad elements"
would most likely take over the town. The lack of balanced
parts would eventually lead to dire conditions.
What happens when the cells of your body are missing
parts?
You eat to provide your cells with nourishment. It's
not just about calories. That nourishment is the collection
of parts every cell in your body needs to function properly.
You provide your cells with parts and those parts are
assembled according to instructions in your DNA to create
a variety of finished products. That could include new
cells, of which there are many kinds, anti bodies to
fight disease, neurotransmitters to carry signals between
nerves, and hormones to regulate your body.
So again, there are beneficial raw materials in foods,
which our bodies use, and need, to carry out vital cellular
functions.
These functions keep us alive.
These functions combat disease.
These functions allow us to heal.
These functions allow our cells to build new cells
and all of the other finished materials that are necessary
for normal life and optimal health.
And these raw materials are called nutrients.
We eat to give our body access to nutrients.
Sadly, our food does not contain the nutrients it once
had in abundance, so it is necessary to supplement a
good diet with quality nutritional supplementation to
ensure that our cells do not suffer from a parts deficiency.
We should still strive to have a good diet, from as
many whole foods as possible, with supplementation being
a means to supplement, not substitute, the benefits
of a good diet.
About the Author
Dave Saunders is a certified nutritional educator, wellness
coach,
member of the American International Association of
Nutritional Education (AIANE)
and author. He is also the host of a weekly, nation-wide
telephone lecture on health and nutrition.
For additional information, please visit www.glycoboy.com
or www.glycowellness.com
or email Dave at [email protected]
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