Whole Foods Diet, Cooking, Recipes, Healing Powers of Whole Food

The more everyone hears about nutrition and how much of our food is now processed, modified and corrupted with added sugar and fat, the more convincing it is that we should eat natural whole foods the way people used to eat these foods without processing. 'Whole Foods' are essentially foods that are as close to their natural form as possible. These foods are unrefined and unprocessed or modified as little as possible processed. Whole foods usually don't contain added ingredients, such as salt, sugar, minerals, carbohydrates, additives or preservatives or fat. The term 'whole food' is often confused with 'organic food', but whole foods are not necessarily organic - simply whole. They are also different to macrobiotic foods, which are whole foods, but not all whole food is macrobiotic. A macrobiotic diet involves eating grains and some local vegetables and eliminating refined or highly processed foods, but also excludes most animal products. Macrobiotic cooking is generally from 85-100% plant based. Whereas whole food diets can include raw dairy products, lamb, various sea foods and poultry. Whole foods diets can also include vegetables like peppers, eggplant, tomatoes, and potatoes, and also tropical fruits like bananas and pineapple, which are often excluded from macrobiotic diets.

What are Whole Foods and Why are they Beneficial?

A good example of a whole food is wheat and other cereal grains.

The United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) regards whole grains as cereal grains that retain the bran, germ and endosperm in the original raw grain kernel.

They recommended that people should eat at least three servings of genuine whole grains every day.

Many people are unaware of what is done to the wheat grain in producing white flour. The bran and wheat germ are removed and the flour is bleached to give it a white appearance, all because ancient milling methods mean that wholemeal flours tended to spoil.

Make sure that the wholemeal flour you buy is a genuine whole food and not a 'fake' white flour to which various additives have been made.

The USFDA MyPlate guide recommends making half your plate fruits and vegetables and making at least half your grains whole grains.

Various studies have pointed to the health benefits of whole foods.

Many health experts believe that eating more whole foods is the key for improving health, well-being and helping to prevent disease. There are many potentially toxic and harmful chemicals in the additives that processed foods contain, such as colors, flavors, stabilisers and preservatives. When food is 'refined', many of the nutrients and natural phytochemicals are removed losses, and no 'enriching' or adding vitamins to the processed products will make the food whole again. A food that is whole, retains all its 'parts' in the original proportions (vitamins, protein, carbohydrate, minerals, fat, fiber and phytochemicals).

Typical whole foods are:

• Whole grains instead of refined grains. 'Brown' rice, genuine wholemeal flours and products
• Raw Vegetables, Fruits, and Beans as ingredients for cooking instead of supplements added to processed foods to provide the fiber and vitamins.
• A skinless chicken breast cooked with healthy ingredients and home made sauces, instead of chicken nuggets coated in fat soaked batter that has been processed with fats, flavorings, and preservatives added to the meal.
• A whole baked potato with chopped fresh green onions and fresh light sour cream instead of a bag of sour cream and onion flavored potato chips.
• A plate of fresh berries with low-fat yoghurt or home-made museli instead of breakfast bars, highly processed breakfast cereal products or raspberry toaster pastries.
• A blueberry smoothie made with yogurt, blueberries and a frozen banana instead of a red or blue-colored slushy or a shake.

Reasons to Eat and Cook with Whole Foods

Listed below are some of the reasons we should eat more whole foods, according to nutrition experts:

Phytochemicals - In the past 10 years, scientists have identified hundreds of biologically active plant-food components called phytochemicals (or phytonutrients). They include the powerful antioxidant lycopene, a red-colored carotenoid found mainly in tomatoes; anthocyanins, a powerful antioxidant that gives deep blue color to berries; and pterostilbene, which appears to turn on a "switch" in cells that breaks down fat and cholesterol, and is found in blueberries and the Gamay and Pinot Noir varieties of grapes. The only way to make sure you're getting the phytochemicals we know about, as well as the ones that have not yet been identified, is to eat whole plant foods or ground whole grains or seeds.

Nutrient Deficencies - According to national survey results published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, almost a third of us get too little vitamin C; almost half get too little vitamin A; more than half get too little magnesium; and some 92% to 97% get too little fiber and potassium. The best source of these is whole foods. "Almost all of the shortfalls identified by this survey can be corrected by eating a balanced, mostly plant-based diet,"

Good fats replacing bad fats - When you eat a whole food diet you swamp the bad fats (trans fats and saturated fats) that are often added to processed foods and fast food, or used in the cooking. At the same time you will be consuming more of the "good" fats (omega-3s from whole food fish (not battered or crumbed) and monounsaturated fat from plant sources.

Fiber - Most whole plant foods are very rich in natural fiber. Many processed foods, fast foods and junk foods are low in fiber, simply because the fiber has been removed in the processing. Fiber is important in many ways; keeps food moving through the gut and intestine, helps you feel full faster and suppresses appetite, particularly between meals, and generally helps reduce the risk of heart disease and diabetes. Whole foods are a much better way to get fiber than supplements or in foods that have added fiber. Research has shown that eating fiber-rich foods helps control of blood sugar, blood fat levels, and weight gain in adults and teenagers.

Nothing Added - Processed foods have many additions to improve taste, colour and consistency, with added fat, sugar, vitamins, preservative, salt and anti-caking agents.

Whole Grains have Multiple Benefits - While most people think that the benefits of whole grains are mostly related to fiber, whole grains contain wheat germ that is a rich source of minerals, vitamins, and phytochemical compounds that are beneficial for health. Recent research has shown that eating whole-grain foods lowered the levels of insulin and glucose in the blood and may contribute to reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes.

Simple Ways to Add Whole Foods to Your Diet

• Choose ingredients and foods with 100% whole grains whenever possible.
• Replace half to two-thirds of the white flour in your baking recipes with genuine whole-wheat flour. Adjust the added water to maintain the right consistency.
• Replace all your snacks and desserts with raw fresh vegetables and fruits and home-made dishes. Try to include them in most meals.
• Include beans and pulses such as dahl, in your meals and snacks more often. They are a great source of fiber, plant protein, good fats, phytochemicals, and any other nutrients.
• Make the decision to eat less convenience foods, fast food meals and processed foods as ingredients. These items are loaded-up with added carbohydrate, fat, sugar, salt, and various other additives.
• Don't forget to switch to whole food beverages. Choose options without added sugar such as water, mineral water, fresh fruit juice (unsweetened), green tea (hot or iced), coffee and skim or soy milk.
• Don't open a boxed or prepared pasta product with sauce or cheese mix. Prepare pasta and sauce by hand using whole food ingredients such as fresh tomatoes and herbs.
• Instead of soup mix, cook a homemade soup that has far greater nutritive value because it is made with fresh vegetables and beans.
• Replace fast foods with home-cooked meals.
• Avoid the pre-mixed and ready to cook meals, including marinated beef and chicken which you can buy the supermarket. These items contain any highly processed ingredients and chemicals such as preservatives and flavors.

© janderson99-HubPages

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