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The Importance Of A Healthy Diet To Look And Feel Great
In this article :
Vegan Diet
Losing Weight
Meat
Cow's Milk
Soya Milk
Eggs
Vegan Recipes
Vegan/Raw Food Diet Plan
The importance of a healthy diet in relation to good health and wellbeing cannot be denied, and yet many of us continue eating foods that are known to be bad for our health on a daily basis.
Approximately 75% of the UK population is now overweight, with many people obese. This is a startling statistic, but unfortunately we have become a fast food nation just like the United States.
Fast food aside, many of us rely on prepacked foods from the chiller or freezer as our main meal of the day.
What happened to freshly prepared food? It seems that many of us now consider ourselves too busy or
( more truthfully - too lazy ) to prepare a fresh wholesome meal from scratch. But it doesn't have to take that much time or effort to prepare delicious tasty food when you are short of time, as many of us often are. Besides, when you make your own food, you know exactly what's gone into it - have you read some ingredient lists lately? It makes my mind boggle! The other bonus of course is that you get more food for your money.
Vegan Diet
The best diet for health has to be a vegan diet - especially if that diet is high in raw-foods. A vegan diet is low in fat and cholesterol, high in fibre, protein,calcium and all the other goodies the body needs. Contrary to popular belief that vegans are all malnourished hippies, the vegan diet has now become a worldwide trend.
A vegan is someone who doesn't eat, wear or use anything from an animal ( or insect). This includes meat, fish, dairy products (cow's milk,cheese,butter etc.) and eggs. Vegans don't wear leather,fur,feathers etc. Vegans (as I am) believe in compassion for animals, many of whom never get to breathe fresh air, see ( let alone eat) green grass, or behave in any of the ways nature intended for them, due to the cruel harsh environment of factory farming.
Losing Weight
Do you find that you manage to lose weight for a while, but then gain weight again, because after your diet is finished, you go back to eating the way you used to?
Are you a secret eater?
Do you eat when you feel sad, upset, depressed, lonely or stressed?
These are classic symptoms of
With emotional eating, food is used as a crutch. It is used to make the one comsuming the food feel better (emotionally), rather than just satisfying their physical hunger. Overeating and bingeing is often a sign of deep-seated unhappiness.
Find out about weight loss motivation using weight loss imaging
Meat today is pumped full of growth hormones. The animals are given the growth hormone to make them bigger so there's more meat. If you eat the animals you consume the growth hormone so guess what - there's more meat - on you. It's no coincidence that the population is getting fatter ( there's no nice way to say it). If you want to lose weight, you should seriously consider becoming a vegan.
Even if you're not an animal-friendly person like me, do it for the health benefits. You won't be sorry you did !
"But what would I eat?" I hear you say.
Being a vegan is really easy, particularly if you live in the West due to the high availability of meat and dairy substitutes. Even if you don't live in the West, a vegan diet is vegetable based so you can still find ways around it without the substitutes. It just means you need to make more things yourself and be a little more creative !
Because a vegan diet is based on wholefoods, grains, fruit and vegetables, you need never be hungry again because the vegan diet doesn't have the high fat and calorie content of a standard diet. Obviously if you wanted to lose weight you would still need to keep track of your calorie intake but you could eat whole lot more vegan food if you were on a calorie-controlled diet, than if you followed a standard 'western' diet. Same amount of calories - but you get to eat more food. Great!
Meat
Meat-substitutes such as Vegemince are readily available in supermarkets in the UK. In America it's even easier as you guys have more choice. I personally hardly ever use meat substitutes as I prefer the taste of fresh vegetables over anything pre-packed, but these items are good while you are going through the transitional stage.
Cow's Milk
Many of us are under the assumption that we get a lot of calcium from milk. While it's true that cow's milk contains hight amounts of calcium, we are unable to absorb it due to the homogenisation processes it goes through before it reaches us. Couple this with the fact that drinking cow's milk is extremely cruel.
The dairy industry is just as, if not more, cruel than the milk trade. Dairy cows are artificially impregnated once a year ( well, you have to have a calf to get milk ) and once that calf is born it is ruthlessly taken away from it's mother at just one day old. Male dairy calves are sent off to be raised for veal, which is outrageously cruel. Therefore, if you wouldn't eat veal you shouldn't be drinking milk.
The female dairy cows have the same sad fate as their mothers. Can you imagine being forced to bear a child once a year, and every year having that child dragged away from you when it is only one day old? The emotional pain for both the mother and calf cannot be denied. People say - " Oh, but they're just animals." They're not JUST animals. They are intelligent creatures with emotions and feelings. They feel pain just like us.
At about 5 years old - after giving birth to 5 calves and losing all of them year after year - when a dairy cow's milk production starts to slow down she is slaughtered for meat. What a sad end to a sad life.
I believe many vegetarians who give up meat because it is cruel but continue to eat dairy products and drink milk ( and eat eggs) are unaware of how cruel the milk industry actually is. I was, for a long time unaware of this. But now I know, I shall never be drinking it again.
Apart from the cruelty aspects, let's look at how messed up drinking milk is, when you think about it. Human beings are the only species on Earth to continue consuming milk beyond the weaning stage. Human
beings are also the only species on Earth to drink milk from another species. It's insane. But we have been conditioned to believe that it's normal. If you tell someone anything for long enough, in the end they accept it as fact. We have been told milk is good for us,conditioned to think it's normal behaviour to drink it etc... for so long that most of us accept it without ever questioning what we are doing.
Cow's milk is full of fat. If you drink it, you are drinking fat. If you want to lose weight - as many people do - stop drinking cow's milk.
Soya Milk
Soya Milk is readily available in supermarkets in the UK, USA and I have seen it in other countries that I have been to. This is the healthy choice. Even if you are not compassionate about the animal-welfare issues drink it for your health alone. You will get more calcium from soya milk than from cow's milk, much less fat, and it tastes delicious! It has a much cleaner taste, I think. Apart from the branded soya milks available, many supermarkets now have their own. I have tried Tesco's and Sainsbury's and they are both lovely.
If you live in an area of the world where soya milk is not readily available, consider purchasing a Soya Milk Maker. These wonderful products mean you can make your own soya milk, non-dairy spreads and cheeses for a fraction of the price of the ready made kind. I am going to get one of these myself soon, as we drink so much soya milk in our house it would make sense to make our own.
Eggs
Ok, who wants to eat a chicken's menstrual cycle anyway?? Eating eggs is just sick in my book. Enough said.
Egg replacers are easily available , usually in powder form, from most health food shops. These take the place of eggs in all your baking. It also works out much cheaper. I use Orgran No-Egg, and it has the equivalent of 66 eggs in one small box, which costs about £2.19 in my health food shop. And remember that eggs go out of date quickly, whereas egg replacer can stay in the cupboard for much longer so you don't feel like you have to use it up quickly. If you live in an area of the world that doesn't stock this kind of item, why not buy it online. A small box is very economical.
Vegan Recipes
Now for some easy fast vegan recipes. I highly recommend 7 Minute Chef as this really is the simple way to healthy natural food preparation . So quick and easy, anyone can do it!
7 Minute Chef
Vegan/Raw Food Diet Plan
As mentioned previously, a vegan diet is the best diet for your health, especially if it contains a high percentage of raw, living foods.
When we cook foods, many of the vital nutrients they contain are lost in the cooking process. This is where raw foods come in. Ideally, your whole diet should consist of raw foods. I am not quite there yet, but I do include a high percentage of raw foods in my diet and all I can say is, if you haven't tried it you don't know what you're missing.
Discover how you can transform your life through living plant-based whole foods. Eating for Energy is a revolutionary concept in nutrition that will give you more energy, the body you've always wanted, great health, and enhanced athletic performance.
Eating for Energy is a 368-page information-packed ebook on how and why to eat living whole foods. It includes a 12-week meal plan, 120 raw food recipes, and Nutrition for Athletes component.
Next :
The Fun Way To Get That Toned Body You've Always Dreamed About
In this article :
Vegan Diet
Losing Weight
Meat
Cow's Milk
Soya Milk
Eggs
Vegan Recipes
Vegan/Raw Food Diet Plan
The importance of a healthy diet in relation to good health and wellbeing cannot be denied, and yet many of us continue eating foods that are known to be bad for our health on a daily basis.
Approximately 75% of the UK population is now overweight, with many people obese. This is a startling statistic, but unfortunately we have become a fast food nation just like the United States.
Fast food aside, many of us rely on prepacked foods from the chiller or freezer as our main meal of the day.
What happened to freshly prepared food? It seems that many of us now consider ourselves too busy or
( more truthfully - too lazy ) to prepare a fresh wholesome meal from scratch. But it doesn't have to take that much time or effort to prepare delicious tasty food when you are short of time, as many of us often are. Besides, when you make your own food, you know exactly what's gone into it - have you read some ingredient lists lately? It makes my mind boggle! The other bonus of course is that you get more food for your money.
Vegan Diet
The best diet for health has to be a vegan diet - especially if that diet is high in raw-foods. A vegan diet is low in fat and cholesterol, high in fibre, protein,calcium and all the other goodies the body needs. Contrary to popular belief that vegans are all malnourished hippies, the vegan diet has now become a worldwide trend.
A vegan is someone who doesn't eat, wear or use anything from an animal ( or insect). This includes meat, fish, dairy products (cow's milk,cheese,butter etc.) and eggs. Vegans don't wear leather,fur,feathers etc. Vegans (as I am) believe in compassion for animals, many of whom never get to breathe fresh air, see ( let alone eat) green grass, or behave in any of the ways nature intended for them, due to the cruel harsh environment of factory farming.
Losing Weight
Do you find that you manage to lose weight for a while, but then gain weight again, because after your diet is finished, you go back to eating the way you used to?
Are you a secret eater?
Do you eat when you feel sad, upset, depressed, lonely or stressed?
These are classic symptoms of
With emotional eating, food is used as a crutch. It is used to make the one comsuming the food feel better (emotionally), rather than just satisfying their physical hunger. Overeating and bingeing is often a sign of deep-seated unhappiness.
Find out about weight loss motivation using weight loss imaging
Meat today is pumped full of growth hormones. The animals are given the growth hormone to make them bigger so there's more meat. If you eat the animals you consume the growth hormone so guess what - there's more meat - on you. It's no coincidence that the population is getting fatter ( there's no nice way to say it). If you want to lose weight, you should seriously consider becoming a vegan.
Even if you're not an animal-friendly person like me, do it for the health benefits. You won't be sorry you did !
"But what would I eat?" I hear you say.
Being a vegan is really easy, particularly if you live in the West due to the high availability of meat and dairy substitutes. Even if you don't live in the West, a vegan diet is vegetable based so you can still find ways around it without the substitutes. It just means you need to make more things yourself and be a little more creative !
Because a vegan diet is based on wholefoods, grains, fruit and vegetables, you need never be hungry again because the vegan diet doesn't have the high fat and calorie content of a standard diet. Obviously if you wanted to lose weight you would still need to keep track of your calorie intake but you could eat whole lot more vegan food if you were on a calorie-controlled diet, than if you followed a standard 'western' diet. Same amount of calories - but you get to eat more food. Great!
Meat
Meat-substitutes such as Vegemince are readily available in supermarkets in the UK. In America it's even easier as you guys have more choice. I personally hardly ever use meat substitutes as I prefer the taste of fresh vegetables over anything pre-packed, but these items are good while you are going through the transitional stage.
Cow's Milk
Many of us are under the assumption that we get a lot of calcium from milk. While it's true that cow's milk contains hight amounts of calcium, we are unable to absorb it due to the homogenisation processes it goes through before it reaches us. Couple this with the fact that drinking cow's milk is extremely cruel.
The dairy industry is just as, if not more, cruel than the milk trade. Dairy cows are artificially impregnated once a year ( well, you have to have a calf to get milk ) and once that calf is born it is ruthlessly taken away from it's mother at just one day old. Male dairy calves are sent off to be raised for veal, which is outrageously cruel. Therefore, if you wouldn't eat veal you shouldn't be drinking milk.
The female dairy cows have the same sad fate as their mothers. Can you imagine being forced to bear a child once a year, and every year having that child dragged away from you when it is only one day old? The emotional pain for both the mother and calf cannot be denied. People say - " Oh, but they're just animals." They're not JUST animals. They are intelligent creatures with emotions and feelings. They feel pain just like us.
At about 5 years old - after giving birth to 5 calves and losing all of them year after year - when a dairy cow's milk production starts to slow down she is slaughtered for meat. What a sad end to a sad life.
I believe many vegetarians who give up meat because it is cruel but continue to eat dairy products and drink milk ( and eat eggs) are unaware of how cruel the milk industry actually is. I was, for a long time unaware of this. But now I know, I shall never be drinking it again.
Apart from the cruelty aspects, let's look at how messed up drinking milk is, when you think about it. Human beings are the only species on Earth to continue consuming milk beyond the weaning stage. Human
beings are also the only species on Earth to drink milk from another species. It's insane. But we have been conditioned to believe that it's normal. If you tell someone anything for long enough, in the end they accept it as fact. We have been told milk is good for us,conditioned to think it's normal behaviour to drink it etc... for so long that most of us accept it without ever questioning what we are doing.
Cow's milk is full of fat. If you drink it, you are drinking fat. If you want to lose weight - as many people do - stop drinking cow's milk.
Soya Milk
Soya Milk is readily available in supermarkets in the UK, USA and I have seen it in other countries that I have been to. This is the healthy choice. Even if you are not compassionate about the animal-welfare issues drink it for your health alone. You will get more calcium from soya milk than from cow's milk, much less fat, and it tastes delicious! It has a much cleaner taste, I think. Apart from the branded soya milks available, many supermarkets now have their own. I have tried Tesco's and Sainsbury's and they are both lovely.
If you live in an area of the world where soya milk is not readily available, consider purchasing a Soya Milk Maker. These wonderful products mean you can make your own soya milk, non-dairy spreads and cheeses for a fraction of the price of the ready made kind. I am going to get one of these myself soon, as we drink so much soya milk in our house it would make sense to make our own.
Eggs
Ok, who wants to eat a chicken's menstrual cycle anyway?? Eating eggs is just sick in my book. Enough said.
Egg replacers are easily available , usually in powder form, from most health food shops. These take the place of eggs in all your baking. It also works out much cheaper. I use Orgran No-Egg, and it has the equivalent of 66 eggs in one small box, which costs about £2.19 in my health food shop. And remember that eggs go out of date quickly, whereas egg replacer can stay in the cupboard for much longer so you don't feel like you have to use it up quickly. If you live in an area of the world that doesn't stock this kind of item, why not buy it online. A small box is very economical.
Vegan Recipes
Now for some easy fast vegan recipes. I highly recommend 7 Minute Chef as this really is the simple way to healthy natural food preparation . So quick and easy, anyone can do it!
7 Minute Chef
Vegan/Raw Food Diet Plan
As mentioned previously, a vegan diet is the best diet for your health, especially if it contains a high percentage of raw, living foods.
When we cook foods, many of the vital nutrients they contain are lost in the cooking process. This is where raw foods come in. Ideally, your whole diet should consist of raw foods. I am not quite there yet, but I do include a high percentage of raw foods in my diet and all I can say is, if you haven't tried it you don't know what you're missing.
Discover how you can transform your life through living plant-based whole foods. Eating for Energy is a revolutionary concept in nutrition that will give you more energy, the body you've always wanted, great health, and enhanced athletic performance.
Eating for Energy is a 368-page information-packed ebook on how and why to eat living whole foods. It includes a 12-week meal plan, 120 raw food recipes, and Nutrition for Athletes component.
Next :
The Fun Way To Get That Toned Body You've Always Dreamed About
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Body Menu :
The Importance Of A Healthy Diet To Look And Feel Great
Fun Ways To Get The Toned Body You've Always Wanted
How To Dress To Flatter Your Shape
Choosing The Best Fashion Colors For Your Complexion
Weight Loss Motivation
The Importance Of A Healthy Diet To Look And Feel Great
Fun Ways To Get The Toned Body You've Always Wanted
How To Dress To Flatter Your Shape
Choosing The Best Fashion Colors For Your Complexion
Weight Loss Motivation