You’ve probably heard the old adage: you are what you eat. Most of us already know that the things we consume play a large role in how our bodies respond. Too many donuts for breakfast lead to a sizeable gut. Running our minivan through the drive-thru causes our digestive system to struggle with low-grade beef and greasy side items.
Choosing to run on a drug-free lifestyle means that you need to pay a lot more attention to what your body has available to it. A regular dosage of medication may have kept your health at a functional level, but your diet can often help you to make lasting changes to your overall wellbeing. Find out how nutrition can impact your daily functioning, for better or for worse.
What’s the importance of nutrition?
Every calorie you consume does more than simply fill up your stomach. It keeps the hunger pangs at bay, but it also means that you are providing nourishment for your body. A healthy and balanced diet ensures that you are consuming the right amount of nutrients to give your body what it needs to continue running at an optimal level.
Nutrients are one of the building blocks to a healthy lifestyle.
Foods that are considered “healthy” have more nutrients that our bodies can use to help repair and strengthen themselves. A lack of nutrients is clearly linked to certain health disorders and chronic conditions such as diabetes, obesity, and heart disease. Even some cancers and strokes could be the result of an inconsistent or poor diet.
How does nutrition affect the rest of the body?
Did you know that the vast majority of your immune system is actually located within your digestive system? Close to 80 percent of the immune system is found in the digestive tract, which is one of the key reasons that nutrition is so essential to overall health.
When the immune system is receiving all of the chemicals and nutrients it needs, it can fight off infection and disease throughout the body. Your diet is key in determining the overall strength of your immune system. Being susceptible to disease and chronic conditions is directly related to what you consume.
However, it isn’t just your physical health that is affected by what you eat.
Many people note that they feel a greater degree of mental clarity and emotional wellbeing when they focus more on their nutrition. Making a small alteration in your diet by steering clear of saturated fats and opting for more lean proteins, fruits, and vegetables can help your physical and mental health make a complete turnaround.
Taking the First Steps
You don’t necessarily need medication in order to make yourself healthier on a day to day basis. Consider enlisting the help of a professional nutritionist to evaluate your current diet and see where changes can be made. It may be as simple as picking up a few servings of vegetables each week.
The overall cost investment for altering your diet is low, but the impact it could have on your health is huge. Don’t you owe it to yourself and your long-term health to take this one simple step?
