You are what you eat, an often heard saying with great truthfulness. Our diet determines to a large extent whether we feel good in our body, are fit and healthy. However, our eating habits also influence which products are offered to us in the supermarkets. If we buy organic products, regionally and seasonally, such sustainably produced foods are also increasingly offered. Healthy nutrition is not only good for us, but also for our environment.
But although we are well aware of this, healthy eating often falls by the wayside. We eat quick snacks on the way to an appointment, order pizza or Chinese in the evening or use ready-made meals. This is due to sentences and beliefs that suggest that healthy eating is complex and something “exclusive”. As if that couldn’t be done in normal everyday life. On closer inspection, however, many of these sentences turn out to be Myths To Get Out Of Our Heads.
You are what you eat: Why healthy eating is good for us
If you eat healthy, balanced meals, you give your body it all of the nutrients he needs. Not more but also not less. Limiting the effects of healthy eating to the biological level of nutrient intake would mean overlooking many positive aspects of healthy eating. If I pay attention to my diet, I pay attention to my body and I am mindful of myself. That is good for the psyche, which in turn is good for the psyche Strengthens the immune system as well like the vitamins on the plate. In times like these a not to be neglected plus point.
However, being careful with food and your own diet also means thinking about where fruits, vegetables, milk and other products come from. If you want to eat healthily, take it seasonal, regional (organic) products and thus indirectly promotes organic agriculture in the near and far. The principle behind it is simply that of supply and demand. The more we ask for food from sustainable production, the more companies will work in this way. Incidentally, this also helps to slow down climate change, because long transport routes are no longer necessary.
A healthy diet has another positive effect – we are relieving the burden on the health system, which has already been badly shaken by the corona pandemic. People who eat balanced and nutritious food have one significantly lower riskto suffer from obesity and the associated diseases of civilization such as diabetes or heart attack.
Healthy Eating Is Complicated and Expensive?
Despite all the advantages listed above, healthy eating is still considered complicated and relatively expensive. In everyday life, out of (suspected) lack of time or money, we then turn to junk food or ready-made meals against our better judgment. But is that really true with time and money? We’ve looked at the most common phrases that prevent us from eating healthily.
“Organic products are more expensive”
Sure, in a direct comparison, one kilogram of organic tomatoes costs more than the conventional tomatoes next to it. Even so, this sentence doesn’t really apply. On the one hand, organic products are sometimes cheaper at discount stores than conventional branded products, on the other hand, the secret to fruit and vegetables is “shopping seasonally“. If a vegetable is harvest time, more often will ripen at the same time than bulk buyers buy. These “leftovers” can usually be bought very cheaply at weekly markets or Abhof shops. In addition, it also brings Variety on the menuthat fits the season.
“It’s not worth cooking for one person”
If you only prepare one meal for one person at a time, this sentence is actually true. Most pack sizes are not designed for single households, so purchasing all the ingredients you need seems more expensive than a convenience product at first glance. However, it is often overlooked that most food, properly stored, very long shelf life are. And so you can buy in advance. In addition, there are many dishes, for example stews, soups, curries or casseroles, which only work really well in large quantities. The leftovers can be kept in the refrigerator for a few days Eaten later or frozen without any problems. And to be honest: a stew like this tastes even better when warmed up!
“I don’t get any regional products”
Those who live in the country probably don’t have this problem. In large cities, things are (still) different in some places: not all supermarkets purchase their goods from regional suppliers. But what speaks against it weekly shopping in an “adventure excursion” to transform and, for example, buy the vegetables directly from the farmer? Many farms offer direct sales, some even fully automated for 24 hours a day. So we cannot really accept this excuse. It may take a little more effort, but if you want regional products, you will get them too.
“Organic, regional or conventional – all just different labels”
One can contradict this sentence outright. Of course there are always black sheep who just stick different labels on the same goods and who sell imported cucumbers as such from domestic production. Basically, however, the labeling of organic products is, for example, through the EU organic logo, precisely regulated.
“Vegetables don’t fill you up”
This sentence also comes from the realm of myths. Actually, it’s more like that The opposite is the case. Many ready meals and fast food contain a high proportion of sugar. This causes our blood sugar level to rise and we feel full faster than with a portion of vegetables. As quickly as the feeling of satiety comes, it also disappears again quickly. We are hungry again shortly after eating. Contains vegetables, however lots of fiber, which fill the intestines and are slow to release sugar into the bloodstream. This ensures that although we need longer to feel full, the feeling of fullness also lasts longer.
“I can not cook”
Nobody can cook naturally. Cooking has to be learned and practiced just as much as writing, arithmetic or cycling. Our grandmothers cooked so well because they did it every day for decades, although at the beginning they probably burnt dishes or failed. Today there are numerous cooking platforms, video tutorials and recipe pages that offer precise instructions on how to prepare delicious and healthy dishes. Hobby cooks exchange ideas in forums Tips and tricks in the kitchen that save beginners a lot of salted soup.
“Healthy food just doesn’t taste that good”
The fact that we perceive healthy food to be boring in taste and less good than junk food and co. Is not due to the vegetables, but to our poorly shaped taste buds. In junk food and ready meals are mostly lots of fat, salt, sugar and flavor enhancers so that our brain has saved it as “normal”. Natural, not so strongly seasoned dishes, on the other hand, appear dreary. But it doesn’t stay that way: after a few weeks of switching to a healthy diet, we also get used to the new tastes, we can do that fully enjoy more natural food and may even find the “unhealthy” food to be too intense.
In addition, most of the fruits and vegetables do not come from local cultivation out of season. Instead, they are grown somewhere in the south, harvested unripe, delivered in refrigerated containers and only “ripen” in the warehouse. Of course, this cannot be compared with the full taste of sun-ripened tomatoes, strawberries, peppers, apples or zucchini.
“I don’t have time to cook”
I’m sure everyone of us has said this before. On some days this may even be the case, on others there is enough time to (pre-) cook, for example the soups and stews mentioned above. Potatoes, rice or legumes, for example, can be kept in the refrigerator for a few days even when cooked. There are also countless cooking platforms that provide quick recipes with simple, healthy ingredients. And here, too, the following applies: If you really want to eat healthily, you can make the time on at least a few days a week. You certainly have to plan a little more – but it is worthwhile for a healthy diet.
What keeps us from eating healthy is not facts, but our beliefs. Some assertions and sentences are persistent, but can be completely refuted if you think about it more carefully. More and more people are realizing this and are using the numerous opportunities to eat better, healthier and more resource-efficient. As do-gooders we carry with it not “only” contributing to a better world, but also doing something good for ourselves at the same time. Living healthier through healthy eating is a lot easier than many people think.
Learn more about the #weltverbesserer
More #weltverbessern:
- New eating culture: How our eating habits have changed and will change
- Live healthier: We can learn these eight things from other countries
- Your life will taste really good with this herb garden in the kitchen
You might also be interested in these articles
-
What will help you in lockdown: The best tips from the Utopia community
-
Waste paper: why it saves trees if you dispose of your garbage properly
-
Self-optimization mania: stop optimizing yourself!
-
Documentation tip: Minimalism – less is now
-
How to get through the new world of work with less stress
-
Living more sustainably: The Utopia community recommends these films and series
-
Sexism & Feminism: You Should Know These 7 Movies & Series
-
Living consciously: 8 important questions that we should ask ourselves in everyday life
-
Cohesion: it’s better together!