Maybe it’s the food.

What to avoid?

Processed! Processed! Processed!

What are processed foods? Anything that disrupts the natural form/structure of food. Processed foods typically have a lot of sugar or sodium, fillers, unnatural products, and are high in calories with zero benefits; making them “empty calorie” foods.

What are the negative results of empty calorie foods?

You do not get full, therefore, you continue to eat. Filling the body up with sodium, saturated fat, and trans fat, promoting weight gain and disease.

These foods are also known as “stimulating foods”, meaning the high sugar quantity will give “false” energy with a crash soon after, increasing fatigue and at times, disguising other issues going on. High sugar foods induce anxiety, stress, affect mood, fog the mind, and affects our microbiome. Check out the research links below:

Processed Foods & Health

Processed Food & Mental Health

Unhealthy processed/ultra-processed foods would include:

Cookies

Chips

Frozen Pizza

Sugary Drinks

Deli Meats

Most Breakfast Cereals

Fast Food Fries & Burgers

Ice Cream

The list goes on and on…

Incorporating Whole Foods, fruits, and vegetables into your diet will help regulate the affect of processed foods on the body; gradually making unhealthy foods more adverse. Like any routine, our body can adjust and will ultimately crave whatever it consumes. If it mainly consumes sugars and salts, that is what it will crave. The great thing is, our bodies can be trained into craving new foods.

Food can also be addictive, especially processed foods, if this resonates, taking the approach of cold turkey, may be more harmful than beneficial. Slowly add in healthier foods will decreasing unhealthier foods; increasing the healthy intake weekly. Eventually the body will acculturate and crave healthier foods. If you are ready to go cold turkey, DO IT!

What are Whole Foods? Unprocessed, unrefined, and/or unground

Why switch to Whole Foods:

1. Provides the vitamins and minerals needed instead of supplements

2. Phytochemicals (phytonutrients): breaks down fat and cholesterol

3. Source of “good” fats

4. Rich in fiber

5. No fat, sugar, or sodium added

6. Whole grains- not only rich in fiber, but also rich in a myriad vitamins, minerals, and phytochemical compounds

How to switch to Whole Foods:

1. Choose 100% whole food products whenever possible

2. Add more fruits and vegetables

3. Reduce processed foods

4. Include beans in your snacks or meals whenever possible

5. Cut your white flour in half. Use whole wheat or other alternatives (garbanzo bean, cassava, almond, etc.)

Check out THE GOODS section for more information