Whole Foods

Why Whole Foods?

The world is going crazy over something simple

To anyone over eighty or living in a remote area, it would seem ludicrous that people would be promoting eating whole foods (foods that are in or close to their natural form) but that's exactly what's happening and it is because the western world is so far removed from a diet based on plants and animals.

The reason whole foods are getting so much attention

Meal preparation times have decreased dramatically, even since the 1960s when women (I say that because that was typical of the era) spent on average a hundred and twelve minutes a day on meal prep. In 2008 this had dropped to sixty-six minutes a day and halved again by 2015 to just thirty-three minutes a day per household. In two generations, we've seen the daily effort towards the food we eat drop by seventy per cent.

With the drop in time spent preparing meals comes the increased consumption of takeaway and/or packaged foods. Life is busy and diet is often not a priority but food is a necessity so people take shortcuts. These shortcuts, however, come at a cost. Packaged and fast food come laden with sugar, salt, fat and preservatives. None of which are conducive to health. So, as we have moved away from making our own meals the rates of diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure have also increased.

In the past advertising was directed at products that generate a greater return. Initially, when television advertising started to take hold there was little call to advertise the benefits of whole foods as these formed the majority of people's diets. Companies that wanted to turn a profit advertised heavily and sold flat "fruit" wraps and breakfast "cereals" with more colours than the rainbow. And the campaigns were immensely successful. The diets of the average person changed. People ate out more or brought dinner home with them on the way from work. Slowly but surely our meal sizes increased in calories but decreased in nutritional content.

Society now bears the cost of this in the form of medical expenditure.  In 2005 Australia spent $21 billion to address illnesses resulting from obesity. In 2010 this had increased to $56.6 billion. A heavy price to pay for increased stock prices at McDonalds and KFC.  There is a shift afoot to change the way we as a society eat to bring these costs down.  Unfortunately, this is an economic driver but hopefully, the health effects for individuals will be positive.

Increasing consumption of whole foods

The options for whole foods include fruits, nuts, whole grains, vegetables and meat if you are so inclined.

Fruit is simple to eat but it is loaded with sugar. Natural sugar, sure, but the effect on the body is the same; a spike in energy that leaves you feeling subsequently drained and looking for another hit. I say that deliberately, sugar has been proven to be more addictive than cocaine so tread carefully. There are some great options though - blueberries, raspberries, oranges, kiwi fruit, green apples and banana.

Nuts are also an easy option; rich in unsaturated or monounsaturated (good) fats, fibre, calcium and moderate amounts of protein as well as trace elements such as selenium, thiamin, manganese, arginine and potassium.  Remember to keep the volume reasonable as nuts are calorie dense. Generally speaking, up to 30g per day is about the limit unless you are trying to increase your body weight.

Whole grains (oats, brown rice, rye, farro, freekeh, barley, buckwheat, quinoa, couscous, amaranth, bulgur, spelt, teff, triticale) are a source of carbohydrates and therefore energy.

Vegetables (especially in the form of salad) are the perfect whole food. They're an easy way to add fibre to your diet, low in fat and calories. Vegetables are a source of vitamins (A, C, D and K), potassium, calcium and folate. With a high water content, they are great for the skin.

Meat is pretty self-explanatory. Grass-fed organic is best if you can afford it. If you can find a butcher that works preservative free that's even better. Generally speaking, buying from an "old school" butcher is the way to go as packaged meats found in supermarkets tend to be less fresh, coated in preservatives to increase their shelf life and wrapped in plastic which leach phthalates that are known to affect the reproductive system.