Food, Naturally: Why You Will Feel Better Eating It

In case you are new to the series, you can start at the beginning or the introduction.

The easiest answer goes back to what was stated in this post: “God made our bodies to function using the food that He gave us and people ate this way for thousands of years.” If God made cholesterol, saturated (and unsaturated) fat, natural vitamins and minerals, plants and animals, then our bodies will not only survive, but thrive from eating these things.

Some nutrients that our bodies need are found only in animal products. Even cultures that are traditionally vegetarian will eat dairy, eggs, or even bugs because of the necessary nutrients found there. No culture is traditionally vegan. That form of eating is unhealthy and even deadly without manmade supplements. With animal products, you cannot separate the necessary nutrients from the cholesterol; with dairy, you cannot separate them from the fat. Those are the places where the nutrients are found.

Let’s start out with a research example: “In 1996, researchers noted that Israeli Jews followed the recommended diet for preventing obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. They ate fewer calories, more carbohydrates, less fat, less saturated fat, and more polyunsaturated vegetable oils than Americans. Their diet closely resembled the USDA food pyramid, including generous amounts of fruits and vegetables” (Real Food, 206). We would assume, this being the recommended diet, that they lived longer and healthier than anyone in the world. “The reward for this dietary discipline? Higher rates of obesity and diabetes than Americans and similar rates of heart disease” (206).

So, if we shouldn’t eat the USDA recommended diet, what should we eat? And how do these things benefit our body? We should eat traditional foods, prepared in traditional ways. These are the foods God gave us. And this is the way it should be: Food, Naturally.


**I will elaborate on each food or group individually in their separate post.

Food, Naturally: Why Eat Real Food, Part II

In case you are new to the series, you can start at the beginning or the introduction.

Like I discussed last post, “experts” and “researchers” can deceive us. This is for the reason previously stated in the introduction:

“There are so many false sources out there that it can be hard to sift through them, but one of the most important things to remember is this. Do they have a political, financial, or other gain that may be obtained by making these remarks regarding what we eat?”

Most things are done and said today for the sole purpose of making money.

• Poorly-conducted studies are carried out just so companies have “proof” that their product is safe to use or consume, even if it is not (and long-term effects can never be studied quickly—which means most food products on the market today have not been tested for long-term side effects).
• Companies make claims on their packages that have never been confirmed and may even be false. Our government has made multiple laws stating what can and cannot be advertised on packaging, but there are still many things which are not yet regulated.
• Many large businesses employ lobbyists whose sole purpose is to pressure the government with the idea their product is safe, but their concern is money, not safety.
• Government officials are swayed by kickbacks or campaign funds instead of actual facts and figures done by legitimate double-blind, random, large research studies.
• Most companies hire lawyers for lawsuit-protection instead of chemists and chefs to change their “formulas”. (Real food doesn’t need a chemist or a lab.)
• Companies buy the cheapest ingredients so their foods are more profitable and then enhance the flavor with artificial ingredients and add “nutritional value” by fortifying/enriching with manmade vitamins and minerals.

If you don't believe me, read this article linked on a later Food, Naturally post.

As you can see, the consumer must always remember the old phrase “buyer beware”. We cannot and should not trust the companies making the food—their concern is profit. We cannot and should not trust the government to regulate our food—more laws means less freedom. (Big government is bad.) We must control the market ourselves by voting with our food dollars. We should buy safe, local products—real foods. We have a right to be able to speak in person to the farmer and ask questions about the products. We have a right to see where our food is grown or raised. We must demand more for ourselves and our families. And it all starts with what we are buying … it should be Food, Naturally.

Food, Naturally: Why Eat Real Food, Part I

In case you are new to the series, you can start at the beginning or the introduction.

Why is where we begin all reasonable discussions. This is the reason for including it at the beginning of the series, rather than specifically with each subsequent post. We should think for ourselves, because some things that “experts” or “researchers” say are actually harmful to us and we may not know or understand that without coming to our own conclusion beyond “so-and-so said I should”.

For everything, it is best to use common sense. Eating food is no different. Just as with other things, people (including myself) can get lazy and decide that “others must know better than I do” or “if they make it, it must be safe”. The worst excuse we use is “if government officials say something is or is not safe, they must be right”.

Using common sense with food is so easy, though. God made our bodies to function using the food that He gave us and people ate this way for thousands of years. Yet, in the past century or two, man thought he could make it easier on everyone by developing his own food in factories and over-crowded farms. This food can never compare to what God gave us. God knew what we needed to survive and thrive, to live longer and healthier. Processed and industrially-farmed food can never compare to Food, Naturally.

Food, Naturally: What is Real Food?

In case you are new to the series, you can start at the beginning or the introduction.

Many people may tell you different things about what real food is to them. I will tell you my definition first and include some others as well.

My perfect definition of real food encompasses locally grown, seasonal fruits and vegetables; locally-raised, pastured beef, pork, and chicken and eggs; raw milk and raw milk cheese; and freshly milled whole wheat breads. Some people may include an emphasis on plant foods or one on animal foods. Others focus on raw foods and sprouted or soaked grains. And others worry about humanely raised animal products, no genetically modified organisms (GMOs), or simply just organic foods.

I believe the most important, yet simplest definition of real food is food in its whole form, as close to nature as possible and made into meals from scratch in our own kitchens instead of processed in a lab (literally, in some cases) and packaged in a factory.

My goal for my family is to eat as much:

• locally grown produce (from my own garden or bought from local farms/farmer’s markets)
• locally-raised, pastured beef, pork, and chicken and eggs
• raw milk from pasture-fed cows, which can be skimmed for cream and made into butter
• raw milk cheese or at least whole-milk cheese
• freshly milled whole wheat breads and other flour products
• canned (or possibly even lacto-fermented) fruits and veggies for use when out of season
• butter, cream, extra virgin olive oil, coconut and palm oil, lard, and meat fat as possible.

And eliminate as many:

• industrial fats (trans fats/hydrogenated fats, margarine, vegetable oils, and shortening)
• refined grains and sugars, and artificial sweeteners
• and even raw/natural sweeteners as possible.

I was working toward this in Washington, but am currently taking it slow during this transition in our lives. I still try to eat as many whole foods and traditional fats as possible while including as much organic as possible since we are not eating local.

Hopefully, I will help you achieve this with your family (if you so choose) and help you understand why this is important throughout this Food, Naturally series.

Food, Naturally: Introduction

In case you missed it, you can start at the beginning.

I would like to start off by describing my food journey.

There was once a time when I did not make (or stock in my kitchen) anything that was not “something”-Helper or what I refer to as “pasta boxes” (Pasta Roni, Knorr Pasta sides, and Kraft Macaroni items). At that time I did not even stock fruits and vegetables in my kitchen and if on the rare occasion that I did buy “produce” at the store, it was only canned and most likely stayed in the cabinet until I cleaned them out for the food pantry! I thought that all fat was bad for you, but I still wanted my “fattening” pastas so I used skim milk, figuring it would reduce the calories I was afraid to eat (but did anyway). This continued through my meeting Robert. We still have memories of Tuna Helper only dinners.

Right before I started writing my own blog (my first post was in March 2009) I started checking out different blogs through the Faith and Family LIVE comments sections. I found some good, some bad, some personal journal-type, and some “business” with big followings. Because of a couple good blogs I encountered I started thinking seriously about what we eat.

One of the blogs I read regularly is one I mentioned previously called Heavenly Homemakers. The writer Laura (yes, same name) is a Christian homemaker who blogs mostly about real food: her family’s journey to real food, recipes, tips, and information. She also blogs about faith and living. The other blog I have been reading on and off for almost two years, but as of this writing I have already read through about twenty or more posts in just one day! It is called Kitchen Stewardship. The writer Katie is a Catholic mother who blogs about good stewardship in and out of the kitchen.

Through these two blogs, many online sources, and the two books mentioned here, I have learned a great deal about what we should really be eating. So as not to overwhelm those of you who may have never heard of any of this, I will start slow and not include too many details but only strongly encourage you to do your own reading and researching. There are so many false sources out there that it can be hard to sift through them, but one of the most important things to remember is this. Do they have a political, financial, or other gain that may be obtained by making these remarks regarding what we eat? (This can be applied in any case where safety and health are concerned. I will probably be writing about this in other areas at a later date.)

With that, I will conclude my introduction as well as let you know that my next post will be generically answering the question, “What is real food?” And each subsequent post will briefly elaborate on a specific food or group of foods! I cannot wait to share more.

New Series Coming! Food, Naturally

I am finally getting around to posting about food which I stated as a topic when I first started writing again this year in May! The good thing is I have read more and know more about it now than I did when I mentioned it previously. This is going to be a short series about what I have learned regarding true nutrition and health. Like I mentioned previously, you might be shocked by what you find here, but I urge you to read and research for yourselves.

These are the books I have enjoyed reading thus far.

• Real Food: What to Eat and Why by Nina Planck
• Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats by Sally Fallon and Mary Enig

Other books that I would like to read on this topic include:

• The Untold Story of Milk, Revised and Updated: The History, Politics, and Science of Nature’s Perfect Food: Raw Milk from Pasture-Fed Cows by Ron Schmid
• Know Your Fats: The Complete Primer for Understanding the Nutrition of Fats, Oils, and Cholesterol by Mary Enig
• Eat Fat, Lose Fat: The Healthy Alternative to Trans Fats by Mary Enig and Sally Fallon
• Real Food for Mother and Baby: The Fertility Diet, Eating for Two, and Baby’s First Foods by Nina Planck
• The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan
• In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto by Michael Pollan

Many of these books you may be able to find at your local library, but I would recommend buying Nourishing Traditions because of its depth of knowledge and recipes.

I have some topics that I am currently planning to write about, but I may add more as I go along, which is something I seem to do often with these series! Posts for the series are (currently):

• Introduction
• What is Real Food?
• Why Eat Real Food, Part I
• Why Eat Real Food, Part II
• Why You Will Feel Better Eating It
• Raw Milk* and Other Dairy
• Article I
• Meat, Eggs, and Good Fats
• Article II and More
• Vegetable Oils and Bad Fats
• Real Whole Wheat
• Article III and More
• Natural Sugars and Eating Less of Them!
• Eliminate Processed Foods
• Know Your Ingredients, Read Your Labels
• Article IV
• “Natural” Can Be Deceiving
• Why is Organic Better?
• Not all “Organic” is Good Food
• So What About Snacks and Dessert?!

* I previously wrote a post about raw milk, the first from my Back to Nature series, but I plan on writing another one to include the information I have read and learned since.

I wanted to add two links to my favorite blogs to read for nourishing, real food recipes: Heavenly Homemakers, and Kitchen Stewardship

A New Post ... Finally

It has been almost two months since I have published anything on here. For those still checking in, I thank you for your patience. My computer was being "worked" on for over six weeks before they finally just gave us a new one. Pretty disappointing and definitely frustrating, but I finally have a usable computer now.

I hope to start writing here again soon, but I cannot make promises as to how often it will be. I am so much busier since we moved! I am not sure when I will be able to start writing my marriage series again. I haven't been able to read or write anything related to it thus far. But I will try to post something interesting for the interim!

My next post will be about what I am learning about food. It is very interesting. I have been trying to get and keep my family healthy for a while, but these books I have been reading just take the cake. Be prepared for some shocks unless you have already done your own research on real food!