Eating is a prime activity of living things in general. Without the food we eat, our life will come to nought. It's the food we eat that sustains our life on earth. And because eating has positive and negative effects, it's imperative that we eat right to derive the positive side of food, or eat carelessly and be dammed.
Over the years, suggestions of different kinds have been put across of how we can eat food and be healthy. The basic nutrients - carbohydrate, protein, fats/oil, and mineral salts are well known, including their sources.
Even at primary school level, pupils sing it like a song saying, carbohydrate, fat and oil are for energy; protein for growth, minerals and vitamins are for wellbeing.
While all this is okay, the issue is how we take in these nutrients. In the first place, we know that too much of anything is bad. And so, too much of any of these nutrients is to our disadvantage. Excessive intake of any food stuff will compel our body to store them up in the form of excess fat deposit, and consequently, obesity which we know is unhealthy.
At the same time, insufficient intake of food nutrients will lead to weak body systems and their inability to combat sicknesses.
The above brings to the fore what is referred to as balanced diet which one of my teachers of yore insisted should be preferably termed "adequate diet". Well, the important thing is that we should take the food nutrients in the right proportion that suits our body requirements.
We should bear in mind that anytime we take food in excess of our body need, we're belabouring our body systems, and in particular, putting our liver under unnecessary stress. This is because the liver is duty bound to process the excess food to harmless substances mostly through detoxification and deamination.
The case of vegetarians who prefer to avoid animal sources of food but, instead depend on plant sources is now less contentious because essential amino acids whose sources were thought to only be animal have been found in plants like soy and buckwheat.
It'll not be out of place to mention some things we shouldn't be eating. Some people consume things which appear to be more of a problem than beneficial. Something like cigarette does not add value to our health yet, some people indulge in it out of habit or fashion.
I asked one of my friends why he was smoking on a hot day, he said it helps to cool his body down. Some other time, there was cold, and he was smoking. I asked him why he was smoking, and he replied that it helps to warm his body up.
Well, I don't see how a particular item will be serving opposite ends. "Is it possible for something to cool and warm at the same time?" I take it that it's a matter of habit which is not necessary for health purposes. Experts have all the while been shouting themselves hoarse over the dangers inherent in smoking yet, some people don't seem to care a bit.
Some other stuffs in the mould of cigar are things like hard drugs which are known to cause mental health problems yet, it appears some people can't do without them.
In all we eat, apart from carbohydrate, protein and fat, fruits and vegetables are very crucial. I believe that if we take all the basic nutrients in moderation and in accordance to the demands of our body systems, we shall live a vibrant life with little or no sickness throughout our lives.
You are very right. I even know also that the Bible even talks about doing things in moderation and also, being gluttony is a sin. So, we need to eat an adequate diet and not in excess because it doesn´t guarantee healthy living. Thank you for your thought on the topic.
Thanks for stopping by.