Naturalpath

That frozen dinner may be vegetarian and lowfat, but is it truly healthy in the long run?

Mounting health research suggests that eating a “whole” foods diet – meaning unprocessed natural foods – is the best way to stay disease-free, maintain a healthy weight, age gracefully, and retain energy.

Whole foods include vegetables, fruits, and whole, unprocessed grains, nuts, and legumes. As compared to eating from a box or a can, these healthy choices contain a range of beneficial nutrients and phytochemicals. Whole foods are also remarkable for what they don’t have, including added sugar, salt, fat, or chemicals.

Choosing whole foods also means reducing the burden on the environment as a whole. Plastic and paper packaging, additives and chemical preservatives all have a cost to both environmental and personal health. Stress and time pressure can sometimes inspire a quick reach for something off-the-shelf, but this should be the dietary exception, and not an everyday event.

There are a multitude of reasons to eat well. Here are a few of the benefits that come from including whole foods in your diet:

1. Better Nutrition

A typical American diet contains less than the recommended amounts of vitamin C, vitamin A, selenium, potassium, and other vitamins and minerals. Organic foods grown in nutrient rich soil are themselves nutrient rich, providing more of what your body needs.

2. Plenty of phytochemicals

In the past ten years, scientists have identified hundreds of biologically active plant-food components called phytochemicals, most of which are powerful antioxidants. Examples include lycopene, found mainly in tomatoes; lutein, found in orange vegetables like carrots and squash; and anthocyanins, found in berries.

3. Beneficial fats

A whole foods diet with plenty of fish, fruits and vegetables, and nuts and seeds makes it easier to get enough “good fats” (Omega-3 fatty acids and monounsaturated fat) and eliminates trans fats and saturated fat.

4. Fiber, fiber, fiber

Most processed foods, junk foods, and fast foods have almost no fiber, while most whole plant foods are fiber-rich. Fiber not only keeps the digestive tract moving (and naturally cleans your intestinal tract), but it also helps you feel full faster and lowers blood cholesterol, making it beneficial for a healthy weight.

5. Lower toxicity

A whole foods diet eliminates the added fat, sugar, refined flour, sodium, and other ingredients that can place a burden on your body. You are also reducing your exposure to a multitude of toxins that are present in conventionally grown/processed foods.